Follow the Heart of the Cards: Book 1: Duelist Kingdom
by CancerBabe
Summary: Abigal Lungfur, cousin to Yugi Moto, experienced a major life turning event. Now she must continue her life living with the Moto family. Little does she know that her life is more interesting than she expected and through the help of her new friends, it just keeps getting better and better. (Undergoing a lot of editing. Re-read the story if you wish for the final edit).
1. Prologue: The Fated Day

I never knew that day would change my life forever. I just thought the day would be like any other day. But, for some reason… it wasn't. I can't say the changes that were made was for the worst. I admit that I miss my mother and father, but it won't stop me from protecting him. I just never expected to be so much more. He was the one who showed me a better path to walk, that I could be someone worth the trouble. It all started when I turned sixteen years old…

… I was on my way home from school that day. School was always a bother, same ol' boring lectures and same ol' boring life. If I had to sum up my entire life, that'd be the word. Boring. Our house was far out on the wasteland. Just a brown modern, English style house, one story, nothing fancy. But this place was home. There was a cliff just out back, too. Growing up, I had to be careful to not to get too close or I'd fall. At the bottom of the cliff was a really shallow river. If the speed of the fall would not kill me, the rocks would. However, there was a way to get down that cliff without risking our necks. Dad installed a pulley system that can lift our way down there. Everyday, I would come home, read a book, and help Mom prepare dinner. At night Mom and I would talk about school as I forced myself to do my stupid homework. Saturdays were great, we would all go down to the river and look for some fish. Life was simple, and maybe a little boring, but it was great.

As I approached my home, I could sense something, an ominous atmosphere coming from within the house. My heart raced, what was this agonising pain from the depths of my stomach? Maybe I should ignore it, could be just the hunger from the long day but my legs moved faster than normal. I didn't want to think much of it, it could have just been my imagination playing tricks on me. That was what I hoped. So, I entered my house like I normally would, calm and oblivious to what was actually going on.

"Mom! Dad! I'm home!" I said, flinging my briefcase on the floor with my eyes close for comfort. When I opened my eyes, the small flicker of hope diminished to despair. That dark, horrible feeling I had was no lie. Mom was lying on the floor, the table was turned over and the pictures on the wall were on the floor, broken, glass scattered everywhere. I ran over to my mother, screaming. "Mom!"

I dropped hard to my knees and held Mom in my arms. She was not breathing. There was no life in her whatsoever. I couldn't believe it. My mother was dead. But how? Where was my father? Who could have done this to her? My mother was a sweet woman, everything she done was to keep me healthy, safe, happy… Why?

"Welcome home, Abigal. I trust your day at school was good," said a malevolent voice from within the shadows. I looked over my shoulder, still in shock to find Mom like this. Goosebump raised every hair on my body as the wicked sight of who could have done this but I would have never have guessed that this man, who was my biological father would be responsible for such chaos. Blood rushed to my face as rage, mixed with sadness, boiled at my cheeks. "It's a shame to have something go wrong on your birthday."

His voice does not sound right. It was more ominous than it usually was. Could he really be responsible for all this? No… There had to be an explanation for as to why he was standing over me like this, while my mother has no life left in her. Calcifer, the man who I once called my father, stepped forth out of the shadows and into the light. His eyes, they were completely different. They were red, filled with hatred, like a demon. The father I knew had gentle eyes, filled with love and kindness. There was no way that can be him.

"Who are you and why do you look like my father?" I demanded, my eyes twitched from the escalating anger.

"You poor girl. Your mother never told you about the dark story of our family. I was put under a spell because even though there was no hope for me, your mother was foolish enough to fall in love with someone like me. And to think, the spell last long enough for me to produce an offspring," Calcifer said as he slowly took steps towards me. He was being sickly affectionate toward me. How did he expect me to react to all of this? "Abigal, you must be so confused by now but know that there are powers in this world that's beyond what you think. Your mother wanted you to have a normal life, she didn't want you to know the truth but everything you've ever known is a lie."

Calcifer came over and took hold of the collar of my school uniform. Fear washed over me, I didn't know what to do. All the love that I used to feel from him was gone. Pure hatred just bled out of his very being. What was he going to me? Was I going to die like Mom? I did not want to die! All of this had to be a dream!

"You won't get away with this!" I growled, looking at him in the eyes. "I'll make sure you pay for what you've done!"

Calcifer smirked.

He threw me in the air, sending me hurtling toward the wall. With a hard smack, my back hit it. I gasped, the wind was knocked out of me. I coughed hard to try to catch my breath, but it was hard. The panic, the fear, it was consuming me, making it difficult to breathe. My face felt wet, and I grimaced, knowing. I somehow cut my face on something. My gaze shifted briefly to the culprit, one of many betrayers I faced that day. It was the family portrait, the glass broken inside the frame. My eyes watered, the memory of when that picture was taken flashed through my mind. We were all so happy on that day... I looked back up at Calcifer, who was giving me a death stare. He raised his hand as if he was going to kill me right there, I flinched to prepare for the worse. Suddenly…

"We will protect you," said a soft, yet majestic, voice. Who was this voice coming from? The light that followed it felt warm, not on my skin but from within my heart. All I knew was that everything went white and I was somehow safe. I saw two human looking silhouettes with their hands out, protecting me from my father. I couldn't make out what was going on. Everything was too bright. With my eyes closed all I had to rely on were my other senses. A hand caressed my cheek, the touch was all too familiar. Mom?

"Do not fear the darkness, for the light will always guide you," I heard Mom's soft sweet voice.

I instantly opened my eyes with tears falling down my cheeks. When I regained my sight back my father was gone, there was no trace of him. All that was left was my mother's body, lifeless on the floor.

My stomach was tight as the urge to vomit quickly overwhelmed me. All of this was happening too fast, my mind could not keep up. My life feels like it just been turned upside down. My mother is gone and so is my father. Reading books always made me look forward to my sixteenth birthday. I would have never expect something like this, not in real life. Everyone I have ever known, my only two friends in the entire world, were gone!

I looked around and noticed part of the house was destroyed. The entire dining area was gone, along with the front door, not to mention the room my parents once shared. Did those people do this? Somehow they saved me… I looked up at the ceiling after a piece of shingle almost hit me in the head. There was a giant hole where the roof should be. Was this how they got in? Not a very classy way of entering I suppose. Though, the way those humans were dressed, they did not seem to be from this world or this time.

I looked down at the floor, noticing the small puddle of vomit on the floor. The smell was making me gag again but then something warm rolled down my neck. My hand gently touched the warmth, it was wet. I was then reminded that I was bleeding. Stunned and dazed, my legs stepped over the debris and guided me to the bathroom. It felt like my body was acting on its own. I found myself gazing upon my own reflection in the mirror, my eyes look as if I, too, have died. I had to clean this cut on my face before it gets infected. I flinched at the pain when the tweezers picked out the tiny shard of glass left in my cheek. My hands were shaking, my nerves still rubbed raw. After I felt my cut was clean enough, my agitated hands reached to get out a bandage.

I noticed that my room was the only place in the house almost fully intact, except for the hole where my parent's bedroom used to connect to mine. I glanced down at my bed, noticing debris spread across the blanket. I could not sleep here anymore… What was I supposed to do now? I remember during my other birthdays, Mom would put surprises in my dresser, ones that my father never knew about. I never questioned why Mom did this, I always just thought it was a girl thing… But after seeing what my father actually was, did it mean something else? I wasn't sure about what I should expect to find but I opened it anyways and to my eyes there was an old jewelry box. I sat down on my bed and took the top off the mysterious box. There was a note, so I began to read it.

My dearest daughter,

If you are reading this then the predicted fate of our family has come to past. I'm so sorry that you had to be brought into such a horrible fate. I didn't realize that the spell I casted on your father would only last until your 16th birthday. I know everything seems confusing to you right now and I can only imagine the pain you must be feeling in your heart. We have both betrayed you. I should have told you before and your father most likely tried to kill you. However, I knew that you would prevail because from the day I first held you in my arms, I knew you were special. Special enough to survive Calcifer's wrath once his spell broke.

Now, you're probably wondering what you should do with your life. Live it to the fullest. Go to Domino city, where your grandfather lives. He knows about your arrival. The money for a flight is in the envelope that was in the box along with this letter. I've been saving this money since the day your were born. Please, keep your head up high. You'll need to be strong and always remember, I'm always with you.

Sincerely,

Mom.

So that was it, Mom knew all of this was going to happen but she never once found a way to tell me what to expect. Everything was to be kept a secret until the day of my birthday. Why, Mom? Why did you do this to me? I knew my life was boring but I never expect to be a part of some kind of witchcraft family. Emotions boiled through my skin, I can't imagine that my life was going to get any better from here on out but I could not stay here. This place just caused aches all across my body. It was like a poison that would slowly kill my mind and soul if I continued to stay here.

I opened the envelope that came with the letter Mom had for me. It contained about one hundred thousand pounds in cash. Holy smokes, that was a lot of money! She has been saving this since I was born? Now I have to figure out a way to keep this money safe. I got a little fanny pack that I could use until I get to Domino City. What was Mom even thinking? What does she expect me to do with all of it?

Next came the difficult part… what to do next? Should I call the authorities? But, if I did, how would I to explain all this mess? Or should I just bury Mom's body and just leave the house like it was? I began to panic, not knowing what to do had me pacing around the house. We never really got any company at our house, so leaving this place like it was would not be an issue. However, one of Dad's co-workers might want to come looking for him? What if they came here and saw the house? Would they alert the police? Would I be in trouble for not contacting the authorities myself? I gently beat my head on the wall as I tried so very hard to think of something. I then looked out the window of my bedroom, then I remembered the lift Dad created a long time ago! I could bury Mom down by the river… Hopefully, this would work.

Mom's dead weight was a little rough to handle. My mother was an average size for a female human, so luckily her weight was not overwhelming. But I had to put Mom to rest, when I got the lift, I realized I forgot the shovel in the garage. I carefully put Mom down and ran back to the house. As I looked for the shovel, something seemed a bit strange. Like, I was not even in my own house anymore. Every bit of love I received from this house has completely vanished. I could not linger any longer, my hand just reached for the shovel and I sprinted for the outdoors once again.

As I made way down the lift, with Mom, the river reminded me of the days when I would come down to swim. The river was not very deep, but Dad and Mom would take the time and trail down the river for a perfect spot for a five year old to go swimming. Even as I got older, I would come down here and just relax. However, this time, even the river seemed to know that this was not the case. The water was quiet and slowly moving. Usually, it seemed so playful and full of life. There was so much I had to say goodbye to, I was sorry that this place will no longer be my vacation spot.

I began shoveling away at the ground. The soil was soft and easy to dig up. I quickly became tired, this kind of work was not something I was used to. Nevertheless, I must continue the job I started. Once I estimated that the hole was deep enough, I climbed out and rested Mom inside. A darkness was swirling inside of my soul; my mother was not supposed to be like this! Mom was supposed to still be alive and healthy, with me… If only I had been home sooner, I could have saved her somehow.

"Why me!?" I screamed at the sky as I fell to my knees. "How come my family had to be the victim of a twisted fate?"

I sobbed as I gazed down at my mother from the hole I just dug for her. How could you be so stupid, Mom? You could have saved yourself from the fate of being murdered by your own husband. I still need you, I will always need you. How could you have done this to me? I punched the ground, truly denying what is in front of me.

The sunlight was fading from the sky, motivating me to finish what I started. The dirt I dug up was then being shoveled on top of my mother. Still sobbing, I kept going. I had to get out of this place, quickly, before I get stuck down here. Dangerous animals come to the lake for water at night, so I really had to get a move on. Soon after, my mother was completely buried and I made my way back to the lift. I brought the shovel with me, not sure why. I don't really need it anymore.

When I got back up to the house, I packed my suitcase. Only bring the necessities, I told myself, like shampoo, body soap, clothes, hair dryer, toothbrush and toothpaste. It was all I needed. My energy was almost completely drained as I packed my clothes into the baggage. This was all just a bad dream, I keep telling myself. At any minute, I could wake up and none of this would be true. Just one god awful nightmare. But when I walked out in the dining room, with my suitcase, the giant hole in the roof was still there, along with the damage done to the rest of the house.

There was no turning back. This house was not my safe haven anymore. I have to hope for a better future and live my simple life with my grandfather in Domino City. There lived my cousin Yugi Moto, whom I have not seen for a long time. We stopped going for visits after I turned eleven. Would they even be happy to see me? How would living there be any different from how I used to live here? Only one way to find out, I guess.


	2. Find Me a Guide

"Would you like a snack?" asked the woman attending this flight. It had been hours since I boarded this plane. I paid for another expensive meal, baffled why airplane food was always so pricey. While I may have been depressed, the images of the last few days haunting both my dreams and my waking thoughts, I knew I couldn't starve myself. Mom wouldn't want that. And Dad... During the course of the flight, I had the chance to reflect on what happened back at home. Pain of remorse ached in my heart, thinking about what could have been or what should happened. I need to stop thinking about it so much, my renounced father always told me to not let my feelings be shown to strangers. So, I decided that tears would not be an issue anymore. I couldn't cry. I have be as strong as possible. I doubt my life would be any more interesting than it was back home but I would try to make the best of it. Maybe I could pick up a new hobby, something to occupy my mind, keep me distracted. Not thinking about it seemed the best way to handle it. At least, not until I had to.

"Please be seated as we are now descending onto Domino City, thank you for flying with us," came the captain's voice from over the intercom.

Finally! My body was starting to get cramped, joints were starting to ache. I knew I could have paid for a first class seat, with more legroom and space in general but I didn't want to spend a lot of money. People might ask questions, and I was supposed to keep that money safe. My joints cracked as I stretched my tired arms. That was a seventeen hour flight I just suffered through and I was exhausted. When the plane landed, I was happy to know that I would be moving again.

All the passengers gathered their carry-ons and I just made sure the money I had was still in my fanny pack. The fresh air felt nice as I stepped out for the first time in hours, a smile came across my lips but that quickly vanished as soon as my foot hit the pavement. I felt some kind of energy that flowed through this city. It was not a bad feeling but overwhelming. So much that it made my legs too weak to support my body for a moment. A stranger ran over to see what was wrong.

"Are you okay?" he asked, his tone hinting that he was concerned.

Dang it, someone saw me.

"Sorry, the duration of the flight must be getting to me," I lied, keeping my eyes down. It was so strange, I never had this experience when arriving to Domino City. There seemed to be an overwhelming shield of chaos lingering in this place. It was bizarre, maybe unbelievable. I could not let this stranger see how I was actually feeling.

"That's understandable. Some people need time to get their legs working again." He pulled me up to my feet. I looked up at the man, to think a stranger was so quick to help… That was pretty odd, but his brown eyes could tell me he was just being genuine. He was an ordinary face, surely nothing to really be concerned about.

"So, what brings you to Domino City?" I think he was just making idle conversation. But can I be sure?

"It's a long story but my birthday was a complete disaster and now I have to live with my grandfather, " I simply told him. Perhaps more than I should have.

"That sounds rough. Would you like some help getting to his house?" he offered.

I shook my head refusing the offer. I was not about to bring a complete stranger into my personal matters. He seemed honorable but how can I trust him with anymore information about my life? He might think I'm crazy or seriously dangerous.

So, I waved goodbye to him and left on my own. I remembered this city from years ago. Mom, Dad and I used to come here for summer vacations. Why did I react to the energy this city now? I figured that I would have felt that when I came here years ago. Has something changed that I never knew about?

Domino City started getting dark and Grandpa's house was nowhere to be seen. Did I take a wrong turn somewhere? Come to think about it, I don't think I have seen that video game shop before. I leaned up against the window of the shop, taking a little break. Just great, I'm lost, in more ways than one. No family, no idea where I should go next and, to my wonderful luck, fog started setting over the town. I could call for a cab but I feel so defeated right now that I couldn't even stand anymore. Despair… Yeah, that was the feeling I get from trying to move my own two legs. My physical body could not bare the weight of my sorrow anymore. The heavy mist soaked my face and hair, the density of the air acting as my feelings did, and forced me to fall to my knees. What have I gotten myself into? I asked myself, the gods, anyone who would listen. Who would help a poor soul like me? Just look at me! I was a mess.

"Excuse me, Miss," said a soft voice from in front me. I lowered my face to see who it was that spoke to me. A boy with long white hair stood before me, watching me. He looked about my age, his smile genuine, real. His eyes, brown in colour, conveyed nothing but kindness. How come I feel more trustful with just one glimpse of this guy, while the man at the airport had me securing myself even tighter? He was… cute. Maybe that had something to do with it? "I was walking along and couldn't help but notice that you didn't seem… well. Are you trying to get somewhere? I could always lend a hand."

I didn't even speak. I couldn't. I lift my hand up for him to take it; right now, anyone could run off with me, I was simply too weak to fight them. His firm hands were warm compared to my own, touching them made me feel a little more at ease. Our eyes met, our gazes held. I was sure I looked awful, but at this moment I felt better. Yet, at the same time, I could feel my heart racing. Not in the way it had been over the last couple of days. This was… different. Strange. Should I worry about it more? He grabbed my luggage and put my arm around his shoulder. I felt a little embarrassed about this. His kindness scared me, no one my age has ever shown any compassion for me. This new and unfamiliar feeling was frightening, too. Just… Who was this guy?

"So, what's your name?" he asked. Looking over my body to make sure there were not any injuries from falling just now.

"Abigal." I didn't want to say more than that, but I told him my full name. "Abigal Lungfur."

I don't understand it, I still said more than I wanted. His cute face was making my actions waver. That had to be it. He was confusing me with this odd sensation.

"Well, Abigal, it would help if you told me where you're going." He smiled, and my cheeks were coloured pink. I turned my attention away from him, trying not to give into him, cursing myself for… whatever this was.

"Moto…" I muttered, looking at the stray cat scavenging in the trash can. I had to focus on something else, his brown eyes were enough to make me speechless. Looking at him took my breath away. I could not bring myself to face him anymore.

"You mean Yugi Moto?" I gave a nod in answer. His smile brightened. I'm not sure how I knew without seeing, I could just feel it in the way he spoke. "You're in luck. The card shop isn't that much further actually."

Really? I gave up too soon? I simply sighed and hung my head. This guy was probably thinking I'm a total loser for giving up so quickly.

"Don't beat yourself up over it. You just need some rest and I'm sure you'll be back to yourself again, Abigal," he said with a friendly, though amused chuckle.

I looked at this boy as he kept me around his shoulder. He has been kind to me since we met. Why does he smile so much? I did not know how to feel about it. Do I like it? Or was all of this just an illusion? When we arrived at the shop, Grandpa was sweeping the floor, though we did not go in right away. Now that I saw it again, I remember now that Grandpa owned a card shop. He has a passion for some sort of game, to think an old man like him would be interested in something kids mostly play but what do I know of this game?

The kind boy opened the door for us, my grandpa looking up from his chore to see who had entered. His eyes widened in surprised upon seeing me, his broom fell to the floor with a clunk. "Goodness, what's going on here? Do you need a doctor?" he questioned frantically.

The boy gave him a smile, glancing down at me before he began explaining. "I'm sorry to bother you, Mister Moto, but she said she was coming here and looked like she needed a hand." He turned back to Grandpa, his expression somewhat serious in his concern. "She seems weak. She likely needs some rest."

There was a flicker of confusion in my grandpa's eyes as he regarded me, and I figured that I must have been a whole lot bigger than the last time he saw me. I forced myself to smile for him. "Hi, Grandpa."

"Abigal!" he exclaimed when recollection hit him. Worry in his features, he looked me over as he came closer. "Abigal! It's been so long," he repeated, with a curious hint of grief behind his violet eyes. "I hope your travels were well." He was cheerful with his greeting now that he knew it was me, though he was still worried. I was in a poor condition, it really couldn't be helped.

There was something else in his voice, in his worry. I could hear strong emotion. It sounded like pain, grief. This display, it was likely for the boy. It was Grandpa, trying to stay positive, to not show something was wrong even though he likely knew the situation was horrid. It was something he did. But, did he already know? His arms stretched out as his hands grabbed both my arms. "What brings you all this way to me?"

"I-I can't tell you. Not right now," I said, turning my head. I could not bring myself to look him in the eyes. The pain of the memories were ever vibrant in my brain, like a painting done in vivid colours. How could I speak to my own grandfather about something so tragic? His daughter? A firm hand stroked my hair briefly while my grandpa put his arms around me. My attention then turned to the boy still standing in the doorway, the boy who seemed to answer my internal cries for comfort and protection. Our gaze were fixed on each other once again. What kind of person was he, truly? Grandpa, with his brow quirked, cleared his throat, snapping my attention back to him. Perhaps it was inappropriate to be staring at this stranger the way that I was. For some reason, I couldn't help myself. Why was he still here? Curiosity, and maybe the need of a distraction, pushed me to ask more about him. "What is your name?"

"Ryou Bakura," he answered with a small, polite bow of his head. "People usually refer to me by my last name. But, you can just call me Ryou." He gave me a sweet smile, and nodded as he started to turn away. "I'm sure we'll be seeing each other again. Take care, Abigal." With that, he left. That boy was so sweet, but I still had to be careful.

"C'mon, Abigal," Grandpa urged after a moment. "We better get you upstairs so you can rest. You must be exhausted."

I nodded and tried taking my bag. As I stepped upon the stairs, my knees buckled and gave out from under me. I lost grip of my luggage and fell up the stairs. I didn't understand... Why was I so weak? It was just a flight… But, who was I kidding? Why was I trying to convince myself it was the flight? It was foolish, comical even, that I did. I just lost both of my parents. My father tried to kill me and I could not save my mother from her fate. If only I knew about this stupid 'fate' sooner… But what would have become of me if I had known all along? Would it have changed anything? Forgetting my luggage, I sat down on the step and sobbed. Tears streamed down my cheeks as exhaustion and grief finally took its toll and won its struggle against my will. I could not be bothered that it was in front of Grandpa.

He stopped and looked at me for a moment, quiet, his brow knitted in his concern and shared sorrow. He didn't urge me forward anymore. Just simply sat with me and placed a comforting hand on my back. "Why are you crying?" His voice was gentle.

"Mom's gone… And so is my father." That was all I could say at the moment. There was no more talking right now. He held my hand tightly as the grief took over. The reality of losing someone dear to anyone was an agonizing feeling to bare. Then I remembered again that this was Grandpa's daughter. How was he handling this? "What about you?" I wondered, sniffling. "It must be hard for you, too…"

"Of course," he murmured quietly, his gaze on the floor, his shoulders weighed down with his burdens. "I have had sixteen years to prepare myself for this day, but it never really lessens the pain." The pain that was so obvious in his expression.

My brow creased, my lips parted in surprise. "You knew?" There was someone else that knew but didn't tell me?

"Yes, the very first time she came home, after you were born. She told me about the vision she had," he explained. "About how the spell on her husband would break and the evil within him would destroy the both of you."

"But… something else saved me," I said, wiping the tears from my face. "I just do not know what it was."

Grandpa didn't say anymore, and just squeeze my hand. Poor old man… The wait of when the fated day would play out, it must have hurt. Mom was his flesh and blood after all. I could only imagine the misery he must experiencing in his weak heart. His… heart. Right, how could I have forgotten that? I recalled the day when Mom was crying about Grandpa needing a pacemaker. The idea of losing her father must have been scary. Luckily, he's still alive. Where would I be if he was not here, and what about Yugi? I hoped that his heart would remain strong.

Grandpa then went up the stairs and called for someone named Joey to come help me with my luggage. I turned to protest, I was sure I could take care of my own luggage, but before I said anything, a blonde haired guy came ambling down the stairs. Another handsome one. I didn't see him when I was younger, I would remember him if I did. Maybe he was one of Yugi's friends?

"Hey, you must be Abigal Lungfur, right? I'm Joey Wheeler. Yugi mentioned he had a cousin the same age as us," he grinned taking my luggage into his hands. "Pleasure to meet you."

I stood up and followed this... Joey Wheeler guy, up the stairs to come to a living area. There were a few other people up here. A girl, another guy and Yugi. When my eyes laid on Yugi he jumped from the brown couch and ran over to me with a smile on his face. Even after not being able to see him for five years, this kid has not changed much. Though, I do sense something from him, like a mysterious presence of another person lingered around him. Was it coming from the object around his neck?

"Hey Abigal, it's been a while since I last saw you. I hope you find your travels were well." He was optimistic, as usual. "How long are you going to be staying with us?"

"Actually, Yugi, Abigal is going to be living with us," Grandpa answered in my place while resting his big hands on my shoulders.

"Wow, seriously?" Yugi frowned, a little bothered. Did he know about the stupid "fate" I had no preparations for?

"I'm so sorry, Yugi. But I don't really feel like talking to anyone right now. You'll have to excuse me." I gave him a pat on the shoulder.

"Grandpa, could you take me to my room, please?" I asked, followed with a big yawn.

"Of course. Right this way," he murmured, before he gesture the way.

"Well… I hope you feel better soon," Yugi said. My tired eyes met with Yugi's. I could see genuine concern in both his eyes.

"We'll do some catching up another time," I gave him a weak smile then followed Grandpa.

I was just too tired to try socialise at that point. Everyone else would have to pardon me, and hope they understood. Grandpa led me down the hall and asked if I was sure about going to bed. I looked at the time, nine-thirty at night was a decent time to lay down in a bed. I apologised for any rudeness I had shown. Grandpa told me not to worry about my manners and to get the rest I needed for I'll be going to school tomorrow. I didn't argue about going to school. It might be good for me to just go and do something to take my mind of what happened in the past few days. But I was extremely exhausted, anymore standing and I might pass out before hitting the bed.

As Grandpa opened the door, I took a moment to look at the bedroom. I remember this being my safe haven when I stayed here for vacations. Grandpa must have ordered blankets for me, they didn't look so childish anymore. Floral patterns were more, adult-ish. I really hoped Grandpa did not throw his back out trying to make the bed. Everything else looked the same. Blue coloured walls and a desk for me to use while doing my homework. To my left was the bathroom just for me. At least I get my own bathroom while living here. When Grandpa left the room and I overheard someone talking about me.

"That was rude, she didn't even say hi to the rest of us," said a female voice. That must be the girl I saw with Yugi.

"Don't be so hard on her, Téa. She's been through a lot," I heard Yugi tell her.

"Why? What's wrong with her?" The girl named Téa asked.

"I don't think it's my place to tell you guys," my cousin told them.

"Whatever the problem is, I sure hope she'll be okay," said another male voice. These friends that Yugi hang out with, they seem harmless enough. But, I didn't know these people. I was glad Yugi respected me enough to not speak of my problems with them. I used to pull all kinds of childish pranks on him when we were younger, perhaps I was surprised that there was familial loyalty there.

By the time I got myself ready for bed I was ready to collapse. My body seemed to have ached for a soft, warm bed to lay on. Nothing really in my life makes sense all anymore. What kind of twisted plan could the gods have for my worthless soul? Weak, I was so weak. Was there nothing I could do to fight? My lip wrinkled heavily, my brow furrowed. Calcifer, what he did, it was causing me to question my strength, even my worth. Who knew my own father would turn against me? Against his wife? He was always so kind and quiet. Thinking about him created knots in my stomach. I should try to sleep and forget about him. So, I turned off the light, the room was dark with only the soft glimmer of light from the moon and a few city lights. The weather cleared up rather quick, but that was Mother Nature, forever changing her mind. I liked the ceiling window, it helps to look up at the stairs and moon. But my eyes were too heavy to remain staring up at them, before I knew it, I was shrouded in the darkness of my own mind.

Memories from the events of a few days ago were haunting me. However, dreams did not always repeat the honest memory. They are exaggerated, things added and taken away to make it better or worse. In this dream, it was worse. I was being chased by Calcifer. He was trying to kill me. His face twisted with a wicked grin, his hands outstretched whenever he was within range. Mom... where was she? I looked around for her frantically, panic swelling in my chest. "Mom?!" I screamed out, eyes wide and flitting to and fro. I finally spotted her. I could see her, she was fleeing. Good, there was a chance. I ran after her, desperate. I must catch up with her. If I could, maybe, just maybe, she could live. A beam of light suddenly appeared in between Mom and I, bright enough for me to notice, but my focus was on trying to escape. Calcifer was still hot on my trail, he was getting closer and closer still. If I did not do something soon, he would surely get me! I glanced back again, only to see an armoured humanoid figure in front me. He held a sword in his right hand, a shield in the other. The figure raised his sword and then…

… I was in my room.

It was a dream? But it… it felt so real. I was panting, breathless, as though I had really been running. My skin was coated in a cold sweat, the hairs on my arms risen. I trembled; was it from fear or from the shock of waking up? My mind reeled, I could not wrap my head around the experience. Who was this person in the light? That was twice something like that happened. First, at my old home when they saved me from certain doom. Then they came into my dreams? Who were they, where did they keep coming from? Were they trying to protect me... or destroy me? That was the important question. I would really like to know who it was, though. They say that faces in dreams come from people we see while awake, but I had never seen anyone like that before in my life.

I looked over at the small clock on my desk and noticed the time. I would be getting up now for school, so it worked out well enough. I threw my legs over the edge of the bed and headed for the bathroom for a quick rinse. I couldn't go to school covered in sweat, especially not on my first day. My legs weren't so heavy, I could move more naturally. It felt nice to have a shower in the morning. The steam cleared up my sinuses, allowing me to smell the vanilla rose body wash I used. So refreshing, being able to wash away my troubles, if only for a short time.

Somehow, I was feel more alive today. At least I could be positive about that, I guessed. I dried my hair and I got dressed for school then walked out of the room. The sweet smell of pancakes made my stomach grumble. And rightly so, I didn't eat last night after arriving. I headed into the kitchen to see Grandpa at the stove, making breakfast. What strength he must have. Even though he should be wallowing in grief, he still took the time to make breakfast for Yugi and I. It was admirable. I wish I could find that strength. He already had mine and Yugi's plate ready for us, the pancakes piled high. Yugi wasn't out yet, was he still in the shower?

"Ah, good morning Abigal," Grandpa greeted jovially when he noticed me. "Did you have a good sleep?"

"I've had worse nights," I said, which could be a lie for all I know. I didn't remember most of my dreams but, for some reason, that dream felt like a horrible memory.

I felt a gently clap on my shoulder, causing me to jump minutely. Glancing back, I saw Yugi's smiling face. "Good morning, Grandpa! Abigal!" he chirped as he sat at the table, gesturing to the spot across him for me to sit. I eyed him as I took my seat, curious and baffled. What was with this kid? Even with a good night's sleep, I didn't have the will or the energy to smile. He didn't seem to struggle at all! A small crease formed in my brow as irritation slowly crept up. I could be like him if my life was not so… disoriented.

I took the blueberry syrup and poured it over my pancakes. I watched Yugi pour his syrup then our eyes met. He gave me a goofy grin then took a sip of his orange juice. Yugi had not changed much over the years. Always acting so innocent, like his mind could not be tampered with. He still had that baby face, too, and the spiky red and black hair. His bangs are like mine, blonde and had a mind of its own. As I was eating, my eyes fell on the object around Yugi's neck. Was he always going to wear that thing? It was big and shaped like an upside down pyramid, with an eye in the middle of it. It looked like it was made of gold. The more I look at it, the more I seemed drawn to it. Like, something was drawing me in. Blah! I could not let myself to be consumed by the object. I had more important things to worry about, like getting to school on time.

Finished with my breakfast, I took my plate to the sink, to wash it, trying to distract myself from any more foolish staring. "Don't you worry yourself with the dishes, I'll clean it up," Grandpa said, interrupting me. "You'd be best heading off to school now. You don't want to be late on your first day." That was true.I nodded and turned to leave.

"Hey, Abigal, wait up," Yugi called after me, stopping me midway to the stairs. I jumped a little; I wasn't expecting Yugi to talk to me. I turned to face him, curious of what he wanted. "I was wondering if you would like to walk with me. We're going the same way anyway.."

I nodded. I'd probably get lost anyways. I had never been here any longer than a week for vacation during summer years back, and certainly never went to the high school. I would not have a clue how to get there. I picked up my backpack, which is an old one that Yugi used to have before buying the new he has now, and waited for Yugi. When he come out, we started on our way. The walk to school was a good twenty minutes and the silence between us was so weird. I hardly know this kid anymore, I wouldn't know what to talk about with him. I looked down as I walked, concerned about how this relationship is going to work.

"I bet you're wondering what's story behind my Millennium Puzzle," Yugi commented, attempting to break the ice. "I saw you looking at."

"Well, yeah. It's not exactly a garden variety pendant." I was curious about it since I came to Domino City last night.

"Grandpa found it on an expedition in Egypt," he explained, holding the odd artifact up so I could see it better. "He found the box containing the separated pieces of the puzzle. Grandpa said it was destiny for me to complete it," he said.

"Destiny, huh?" I scoffed at the thought of that. Clearly, there was something more to that puzzle than it being a neck ornament. Curious was what it was. But then it had me wondering. Fate, destiny, what was it all really? Yugi apparently found a part of his. And mine... "What is my destiny?" I wondered aloud, frowning. Did I hope that Yugi held the answer? Perhaps. I felt Yugi put a hand on my arm, squeezing it to give some small comfort. He gave me a reassuring smile then motioned me to carry on. Maybe walking with Yugi was better than walking alone. He might not have had the answers I sought, but I'd probably be lost in my thoughts if it weren't for him.


	3. Heart of the Cards

"I'd like to invite everyone to welcome a new student today," said the teacher as I walked into classroom One-B. He looked a bit familiar. Where have I seen him before? I may not have the most accurate memory but I do remember faces. His soft brown eyes gaze at me. A smile stretched across his face when he remembered who I was. Ah, now I remember. It was the same ordinary man that helped me at the airport. It was a small world we lived in.

"I hope you found your grandfather's house okay," he whispered to me.

"It was nothing to worry about," I replied. He didn't need to know more details than that.

My eyes scanned the classroom, I noticed Yugi sitting with the girl from yesterday; Téa, I believed her name was. Though, I did not think she liked me much. Maybe she was still upset because I kind of completely ignoring her yesterday. I was not too worried about it, I had my reasons. Joey's goofy grin was a little more inviting but everyone else in the class really did not seem at all welcoming.

"Abigal, could you please take the seat next to Bakura?" Wait… As in Ryou Bakura? That was... My heart skipped a beat, my cheeks started to feel a little warm. Really? He was in my class?

Keep it together, I should not be nervous. This was only school. But with so many unfamiliar faces, and now being assigned the seat next to the boy that made my body react in such ways... my insecurities were making me shiver. I would just have to ignore everyone and just pretend I did not exist. Some of the girls were giggling at me as I took my seat. Why? Did I look funny? And why was I getting worked up about being surrounded by new people? At my old school, I was surrounded by people all the time, but no one really paid attention to me. These new people could not seem to take their eyes on me. Was I just being paranoid?

"Hey," came a soft whisper. I turned my head toward it, and saw Ryou staring at me. "Are you feeling okay?"

I took a deep breath in through my nose and out from my mouth. Relax, Abigal. No one was going to hurt me here. I have Yugi to fall back on if I need anyone, I should be fine. At least, that was what I had hoped. But, Ryou did seem to be concerned about me, and with those brown eyes were studying my face, I couldn't help giving him some sort of reply. "I'm all right, just a little nervous."

"Well, I'm glad to see you in school," his soft voice reassured. "And you don't need to feel nervous. You've got me here, along with Yugi. Just know that you have friends."

"I… t-thank you," I stuttered, surprised. Friends… Now that was a foreign word to me. New. The bittersweet idea of having a companion was unwelcoming as of recent events. But how could I blame him with sincerity as sure as his? How should I feel about the idea of having a friend? What did it mean to have one? How could I be friends someone I barely know? Even if Ryou was the only person to ever show me compassion, getting too close to him could be dangerous.

I needed to focus on something else, to stop thinking such ridiculous things. I didn't need it right now. I began to look around the class, shifting my gaze towards Yugi. He was watching me with Ryou. He seemed pleased but concerned at the same time. Why would he have such a worried look on his face? Did he know something about Ryou that I was not aware of? Maybe he was concerned about something else? Yugi was my cousin and I knew that family had to stick together but I did not want him to stress himself over me. He was too kind for his own good. I was sure giving him a forced sheepish grin would help assure him that I was fine; why stress over a harmless guy like Ryou? With that being said, maybe I should get acquainted with Ryou, after all the trouble I put him through last night.

Break time came, finally, and all the students gathered in their groups of friends to talk with one another. There were the athletes, discussing their upcoming game. Girls talking about the latest news in some magazine I hadn't heard of. A couple of kids were playing chess to pass the time to the next period, while others were getting a jump start on tonight's homework. Then there was Yugi's group, playing some other kind of game I hadn't seen before. They used cards, but that was all I could gather. I didn't know anyone, I felt more like an outsider than I did, even at home. It was best if I stayed in my seat. I did not want to intrude on a group I did not fit in with. I still needed food, though, so I dug through my bag to find the snack bar I stole from Grandpa's cupboard. The rumbling beast needed to be tamed. Ryou walked over to me then sat in the desk, facing me. I hoped he did not expect me to share my snack with him. But he just sat there, watching me. My brow raised. This guy confused me. Always seeming delighted to be in my company.

"Can I help you?" I wondered with a little interest. At least, that was I trying to act like, while chewing away on my snack bar. I had to admit that I was a little interested in Ryou. There was something about him that made me want to know more. I just did not know how to go about it.

"You looked a bit lonely, so I thought you would like someone to talk to," he seemed a little eager to have a conversation. "Besides, everyone has their own little group. I thought we could at least talk during breaks."

"Well… what do you want to talk about?" I kept chewing, obnoxiously. To be truthful, this was not really in my nature. It was all an act to keep people away. If people did not like me, then I would not have to concern myself with getting burned by those who I thought cared about me.

He paused for a moment to think, resting his chin in the palm of his hand, leaning slightly to the left. "What's your favourite colour?"

"I like yellow, black and purple."

"Purple, just like the colour of your eyes. And your hair matches the rest of your favourite colours," he observed in an odd, yet cute, way. "What hobbies do you have?"

I was about to reply to that question when I felt a tap on my shoulder. Joey was suddenly towering over us, his hazel eyes studying the both of us. He stared for a moment, and his attention then fixed on Ryou. "So, you're Bakura, right?" he asked.

"Indeed I am. Do you need me for something?" Ryou replied, curious about the blonde guy in front of us.

"Everyone was wondering if the two of you would want come hang with us, seeing that everyone has their own little group," Joey offered, thumbing over his shoulder to the group in question.

Ryou turned his attention to me as if to get my stamp of approval. Why bother ask for my permission? I did not care where he chose to hang out to. But maybe I should go over to see what my cousin and his friends were doing. I agreed to go over with everyone. I took one last bite of my snack bar before sticking it back in my backpack. Yugi and Téa were playing some kind of card game with monsters. I turned to look over my shoulder and noticed the other guy that I haven't been introduced to yet.

"Hey, we didn't get a chance to introduce ourselves last night," he introduced himself. "My name is Tristan Taylor."

I gave a curt nod. "I'm Abigal Lungfur."

"Nice to meet 'cha." He grinned, friendly and wide. Definitely a boisterous grin. I eyed him but decided not to respond. I wasn't sure if I felt the same. My silence must not have sat well with him, for Tristan spoke again. "You don't talk much, huh?"

He was right, I didn't talk much. I did not know much about people and I hardly had any friends back in my hometown, so talking to strangers did not come easy to me. I turned my attention back to the card game. Joey and Yugi were playing with each other this time. I was in a new town, maybe I should try new things. What harm could it do? "So… What is that you're playing?" I asked curiously, examining the cards on the desk.

"It's called Duel Monsters. It's a rather popular game around here," Yugi said.

"What's the objective of this game?" I shifted myself to sit on the edge of Yugi seat while I waited for an answer.

Yugi blushed, feeling shy about me being so close to him. Even though we were cousins, there was the fact that I was still a girl. But he explained nonetheless. "Each player starts off with two thousand life points. The objective of the game is to get your opponent's life points down to zero. Players have to put together a deck with right balance of monsters, spells and traps. Most decks have about sixty cards." I followed with my eyes as Yugi's finger directed my attention to the cards he was talking about. "Each monster have attack and defense power. Plus the spell cards and trap cards help protect your monsters and you can use them to power up your monsters to allow victory faster. Since it's Joey's turn, I'll let him demonstrate."

Joey summoned a monster and declared an attack on Yugi's monster, which was called Celtic Guardian. Little did Joey know, Yugi had laid a trap. He flipped over a face down card known as Mirror Force, which reflected his attack and destroyed every monster on Joey's side of the field. Joey hung his head, having no other choice but to admit defeat. "Can't believe I lost again," he mumbled, obviously frustrated.

"You're really good at this, Yugi. Did someone teach you how to play?" Ryou asked, amazed at Yugi dueling skills.

"Grandpa," Yugi replied with a nod.

So Yugi got his dueling skills from Grandpa. Maybe I should take up this game. It looked like it could be fun. It would give me something else to focus on, take my mind off of my troubles. My gaze went over the cards still laid out, checking out the detail in their designs, when one of Yugi's cards, Celtic Guardian, caught my attention. It was… odd. I was drawn to it. I picked it up just as Yugi reached, to put it away, his brows rose, surprised when I took it. I... stared at it. It felt… alive. Almost like those brownish-yellow eyes were seeing me, peering into my soul. I felt the warmth of words, yet there were none spoken. None that I could hear, not from the card. Yet, somehow, I responded in kind. Silently, though loudly heard. What was this feeling…? A simple duel monster card shouldn't elicit such feelings, should they? No, that was crazy. It was just my imagination, it had to be. This was just a gaming card, the picture done by some artist I didn't know the name of. It wasn't real, the character on the card wasn't trying to make contact with me… Right?

"Um... Abigal, are you okay?" Yugi's brow was furrowed as he looked at me, his concern obvious. I snapped back to reality, and passed Celtic Guardian back to him.

My heart thumped, my eyes wide for a moment as I shook my head. "Uh, yeah… Just a little tired, I guess." But I lied. I was panicking. What was that? I wondered as I went back to my seat, not speaking to anyone else. It wasn't natural… was it?

"That was strange," Tristan commented, his brow quirked and his hands on his hips.

"She's just... different," Yugi defended with a sheepish smile. "Be a little patient. She'll come around eventually."

After school was over for the day, I left in a hurry. I did not bother wait for Yugi. I wanted to talk to Grandpa right away. So I basically ran my way home, though I regretted it. My lungs burned fiercely, I was not used to doing that. It was not my most enjoyed activity. And that would be the reason why I did not do much of it. Catching my breath is hard and a pain.. By the time I finally reached the card shop, I was so out of breath, I couldn't speak.

When Grandpa came out to see what all the commotion was about, all I could do was point at my throat, pant and gasp for air. I was in dire need of water. Without another word, he quickly headed inside to find me something to drink.. I staggered in as far as his front counter, all but flopping on it in my exhaustion. I really shouldn't do that again. As I leaned on the glass, I admired some of the cards that were on display. None of them were giving me the same reaction as the Celtic Guardian card, however. Maybe it really was all in my head.

I glanced up when I heard the door opening, Grandpa returning with the glass water. Able to breathe again, I could finally to speak clearly. "Grandpa," I started after taking a deep, gasping breath, "I want you teach me how to play Duel Monsters." I was hopeful, almost desperate. I didn't want him to say no.

He was silent for a moment before he gave a heartfelt chuckle, with his hands on his belly. "Is that what all the fuss is about?"

I frowned; he was amused? What was so amusing to him? I was being serious here!"I-is that idea silly to you?" No, I was not impressed that he laughed at me.

"No, not at all." He gave me a gentle smile, and I huffed. What was so funny then? "In fact, I will teach you everything I know about Duel Monsters," Grandpa said, patting me on the back. "We can get started right away, but first you will need to pick out cards to construct your deck with." From under the counter, he pulled out a box of unopened card packages. "The very first thing about Duel Monsters, is knowing your deck."

To my surprise, he handed me the box, urging me upstairs so I could get started. Despite his laughter, he was taking my request seriously. I made myself comfortable in the living room and started opening the card packs, one by one. Some of these monsters looked weird and there were cards that weren't monsters. There were green ones, which I remembered were the spell cards, and the reddish-pink cards were traps… right? I suppose these are to be used for defending your monsters and your life points, like Yugi explained earlier. It was a little confusing just to look at them, but I was sure I would start to understand soon enough.

The first monster I came across was a green, ferocious dragon, called Blackland Fire Dragon. A dragon-type monster with fifteen hundred attack points. Seemed effective so I put it in the pile of wanted cards. Picking out cards was not that bad, knowing how to use them would be the difficult part. Who knew how far I could get with a deck like the one I was building here. It could be the worst deck ever, for all I knew.

I came across another monster that caught my attention. This one was called Dragon Statue. A monster that was a warrior but have the heart of a dragon. For some reason, this one felt like it could be trying to tell me something. Just like the Celtic Guardian. The dragon's eyes almost seemed like they blinked at me. I rubbed my own eyes, bewildered. Strange things have been happening today. My mind must be playing tricks on me, because of all the trauma I recently went through. Yeah, that had to be it...

"Something the matter, Abigal?" Grandpa's voice came suddenly from behind me.

I didn't even hear him come up. This was getting… unreal. I cleared my throat, acting normal as I put down the card. At least, as normal as I could get. "Nope! Perfectly fine!" I glanced at the card again, a slight scowl creasing my brow. "Everything is fine," I repeated more calmly. I had to keep it together. The last thing I needed was Grandpa thinking I had lost my mind.

That was strange... This would be the second time today that I was drawn to a Duel Monsters' card. These things were just game pieces... Right? Shaking my head, I turned my attention to Grandpa's lessons. He helped me get an idea of what kind of deck I should use, how to properly build it. I told him that the dragons really appealed to me. So, he helped me build one that consist of mostly dragons, with the scattered warriors, fairies and fiends in there. A few beast and dinosaur types were also put in this deck, for a good added measure. It wasn't safe to have just one type of monster in the deck, apparently. He then taught me about the spell cards. These cards are used to power up the monsters along with protecting them from the opponent. But before Grandpa continued with his lesson he interrupted me.

"Actually, Abigal, there's a card that might actually suit your deck. It quite a powerful one but no one really takes it seriously," Grandpa mentioned as he went the entertainment stand. From inside one of the cupboards, he took out a plain brown box. "I was saving it until I felt the right kind of owner would come and claim this little guy."

When he handed me the card, I noticed that it was a dragon card. A strange looking dragon. Rabidragon. Quite the powerful card but Grandpa was right about it being different. I could see why no one would take it seriously. A dragon with white, fluffy fur on its body and giant rabbit ears. I could see why no one would take it seriously but I felt bad for this creature. It deserves to be taken seriously. Just look at those big claws.

"Thanks, Grandpa. I'm sure this guy will come in handy," I smiled as I put it in my deck.

When Grandpa was about to teach me about the trap cards, Yugi had come home with his friends, and were down in the shop admiring some of the display. As soon as Grandpa had gone down to greet them, Joey was doing as I did, begging Grandpa to teach him how to play the game. Joey sounded to be even more desperate, though. The old man let out a sigh and agreed to teach Joey how to duel, promising him that it would be a challenge. Strange, Grandpa sounded like he was going to be tougher on Joey than me. Yugi then walked into the living room to greet me and picked up my deck to curiously scan through it."Wow, you got some impressive cards in here," he remarked, his brow raised in awe.

"Hey, lemme see." Joey curiously peaked over Yugi's spiky hair. "Ooh, would you look at some of 'em." He grinned as he looked at me, sparkly eyed and hopeful. "I'll trade ya for some."

"No way am I trading these cards," I barked, scowling as I moved my deck out of his reach. Joey pouted and tried to tempt me with these really 'awesome' cards he had, but I was having none of that! "My deck, my cards. No one else can have them." I turned my nose up at him and made an "Hmph!"

Joey huffed, put out that he wasn't able to get any of my cards. Maybe it was silly to be protective of them so quickly, but they were mine. And I just spent time with Grandpa, putting this deck together. Giving pieces away already felt like giving away pieces of my heart. To help keep him deterred from my deck, Grandpa started going over the basics with Joey, quickly getting his full, eager attention. Yugi chuckled at us, amused and pleased with Joey and mine's antics, shaking his head before listening to the lesson himself. I stayed long enough to learn that trap cards are used when the opponent made a move that could alter the chances of winning, like summoning a really power for monster or attacking one of the monsters on the opponent's side of the field. There were different ways to activating the different traps, it all depended on the description and the right time to use them. Use them correctly, and possibility of winning the game or at least surviving for another round would be at hand.

Grandpa put me in charge of most of the cooking in the house. He thought it would be a good idea, to give me a chore to focus on. It seemed I wasn't the only one who thought I could use some distractions. Tonight, I cooked fish and chips for dinner. After we finished eating, Yugi helped me clean up and Grandpa began telling us about some adventures he used to go on, with his best friend. Grandpa was a retired archeologist, which would explain how he found Yugi's Millennium Puzzle. He also mentioned how his best friend had given him a Blue-Eyes White Dragon card, an incredibly rare card in the Duel Monsters world, as a token of their friendship. That was really nice, someone gave Grandpa something as valuable as that dragon, as a reminder that they would always be friends.

Stretching out his back, Grandpa got up from the table once the cleaning was almost done. "I'm going back to attend to the shop. You kids have fun now," Grandpa said, but on his way down the stairs, he called out to me. "And Abigal, none of the shenanigans you used to do to torment Yugi."

"I'm too old for that stuff now, Grandpa," I protested, huffing as I scrubbed the last dirty frying pan. When that was done, I sat at the kitchen table, pondering on what Grandpa told us. His life seemed so exciting and full of adventure. Now, he could sit and look back on all those memories, appreciating every moment by sharing them with us. I had always liked Grandpa, his stories really made me wish my life was more interesting. That might actually happen in this new town. Maybe.

"Hey, Abigal," Yugi suddenly said, interrupting my train of thought. Chin rested in my hand, I turned my gaze toward him, waiting for him to continue. "Would you like to have a duel against me? It'll be good practice since you're new at this."

I sat up in my chair, stretching my arms across the table to get the kinks out. "Sure," I replied with a nod. I figured it would be a good idea, considering he had a point about me being new at this game. It would be nice to be able to play it decently well. Not that it mattered how good I got. Even if I eventually got to be as good as some tournament champion or something, would it really be of importance? I mean, it was just a game. Not like we were saving the world with some playing cards. But I did want to pick up a new hobby and being able to improve on something makes the motivation even greater.

So Yugi and I got out our decks. He told me that shuffling our opponent's deck would help for an honest duel. It was also good manners. However, it was not a necessity. But, for the sake of teaching me duelling etiquette, we shuffled each other's decks and prepared for battle. First, we shook hands, for good sportsmanship, then drew five cards. Yugi told me that we could not have any more than six cards in our hand, unless there was a card on the field that allowed for more. Since Yugi had more experience, I made him go first. I wanted to get the general idea of how to play. I saw him play against Joey at school, but it was different now that it was being shown to me. He explained that there are five phases all together in one round.

First phase was the draw phase, which was the time the player draw their card for the new round. Second was the standby phase, that was when the player examined the cards in their hand and thought of a strategy to survive the round or to take out the life points of their opponent. Next was the main phase. For this round, Yugi summoned a monster face-down. With them being face down like that, the monster was in defense mode. Since this was the very first round in the game, Yugi was not allowed to attack me. I was defenseless, making it an unfair advantage for him. The second main phase was to normal summon or special summon a monster, or activate more cards before the end phase. Some people skipped it because they did enough during their first main phase. There could only be one monster normal summoned during a turn. However, through effects of certain cards, there could be more than one monster special summoned. All this information was making my head hurt, it was a lot of information to take in at once. But I was sure I could get the hang of the game as I improve over time.

So now it was my turn. I had to admit that I was nervous. Yugi knew so much more about this game and making a fool of myself was something I could easily do, even if I didn't try it. Plus, what if Yugi laughed at my mistakes? After the hard time I gave him while we were kids, he would probably take the opportunity. That would be my doing, though, for being a little snot. Looking like I knew what I was doing was how I liked to do things. But this was making me falter. And I detested it. Growing up, my father told me that showing weaknesses to the enemy was permission for them to use my weaknesses against me. Yugi was my cousin, but at this moment he was opponent, and he already knew some of my weaknesses...

"Go ahead, Abigal. If you make a mistake, I'll help you," he reassured me.

"Y-you won't make fun of me?" I asked nervously, my face hidden behind my hand of cards.

Yugi pouted, his young face making the expression childish and kind of cute. "Of course not. Trust me."

Nodding, I drew a card from my deck and began my turn. I took a deep breath. Yugi gave me his word, he would help me. I had three monsters in my hand, with a spell called Card Destruction and two trap cards. So for my main phase, I put my Petit Dragon out in attack mode. With seven hundred attack points, I was sure he was strong enough to go up again whatever Yugi had faced down. I decided to take the plunge and attack his facedown card. My little dragon didn't have enough attack points to destroy his Beaver Warrior. I finished my move with putting one trap card facedown and because I attacked a monster with higher defense than my attack points, I lose life points to the difference. I was left with eleven hundred life points. Four hundred points lost in my very first turn. That was frustrating.

But, as promised, Yugi didn't laugh. Instead, he simply went about drawing his next card. "A little tip," he started, glancing at me briefly, "if you have a strong monster in your hand, it best to get them out first." Yugi smiled, bright and cheerful. Like always. "The stronger monsters sometimes intimidate players, making them slip up, giving you an advantage."

"Really? Do you do that?" I questioned, tilting my head at Yugi. That was surprising. If he did do that, it was something that changed over the years. Yugi was never the type to bully, let alone intimidate.

"Not usually," he replied, scratching his slightly pink cheek. Okay, good. That might have been more than a little heartbreaking if Yugi wasn't the same sweet kid I remembered. "But the important thing is knowing how to come up with an effective strategy."

I guess that made sense. Yugi then summoned another monster, which triggered my trap card: Adhesion Trap Hole. The original attack points of his Feral Imp were cut in half. Even though this occurred, his monster still had enough attack to destroy my Petit , I only lost fifty life points this time. I was still left with ten thousand and fifty life points. Yugi still had his entire two thousand that he started with. I had to figure out a way to at least get him down low enough to show that I made some kind of effort.

"Nice defense, if you didn't activate that card you would have lost a lot more life points," he complimented me.

Yugi's praised gave me some confidence to continue. What was this feeling I was getting from playing here with him? I was… happy? Like there was a bond connecting between us. Maybe trusting Yugi would not be such a bad idea. I was able to once, when we were kids. I could do it again. He was teaching me how to play the game and we were having fun. It was strange, but I liked it.

I was not used to planning my defenses, most time it would all come instinctively. Maybe that was how I should play my rounds, by trusting in my gut. So, I continued to my next turn. I drew a card, this time it was a monster named One-Eyed Shield Dragon. The name of this one spoke for itself. The dragon had thirteen hundred defense and seven hundred attack points. I could put it in attack mode, considering that the effects of my trap card is still affecting the Feral Imp. But on Yugi's next turn, he would be able to attack my monster with a new monster, or with his Beaver Warrior. I had to think more carefully. Chewing on my lip, I nodded to myself, deciding to put this one facedown in defense mode then placed my other trap card down.

Yugi didn't say anything about me not attacking him this turn. I hoped I made the right decision by not doing so. He didn't summon a monster but just attack my monster with his Beaver Warrior. Turned out, my plan worked. He then explained that because he attack my monster that had defense greater than his attack, he lost life points equal to the difference. It was just like when I attacked his Beaver Warrior. And now, because of that, he only had nineteen hundred life points left. Good, I was able to get a chunk out of Yugi's life points. A small chunk, but a chunk nonetheless.

"Another nice move," Yugi praised. He almost seemed proud. "You're getting the right idea when it comes to the defensive part of the game." Yet another compliment in the same breath. He had no trouble tossing them out about my dueling. That made me feel good. Even though I was just a beginner at this game, it already felt like I was improving. He placed a card faced down in the trap and spell zone.

"You better be careful, Yugi, you might have a new rival on your hands," I joked, grinning from behind my hand.

He laughed lightly, amused. "I would love that!" Yugi looked at me with kind, innocent eyes. "But with all jokes aside, if improving on this game means you'll be my rival, I would accept it gladly. You're already making progress." He nodded, like it had been decided. "Now, I want you come up with an offensive strategy." It was back to teaching, apparently. "I'm sure it'll be great!"

He was right, I might have a good idea at how to defend myself but I need to know what I was going to do in order to take more of his life points. That was the point of the game, whoever reached zero first, loses the duel. I had to think on my toes. My first card for the round was just another weak monster and this hand was not going to get me anywhere. None of my monsters were strong enough to go up against Yugi's beaver warrior. My attention then turned to the magic card I had since the beginning of the game. Here goes nothing...

"I activate the magic card, Card Destruction. The effect of this card was that we both discard the cards in our hands to the graveyard and draw the same amount of cards," I said, my voice a little shaky, nervous, yet excited about this move. I just hoped I had made the right move. Yugi watched me carefully, but he still had the look approval, like I was doing something right. In this hand, I have stronger monsters, I drew Blackland Fire Dragon, Lesser Dragon and another Petit Dragon. I looked over the other cards I have and decided to activate another magic card called Pot of Greed. I drew two extra cards. "I summon Blackland Fire Dragon, in attack mode,and now I activate the magic card, Dragon Treasure!" I saw Yugi's surprise that I would have such a card in my deck.

This magic was equipped to my dragon and gives it an extra three hundred attack and defense points. So Blackland Fire Dragon's attack was now at eighteen hundred. More than enough to take out Yugi's weakest monster, Feral Imp. He didn't have anything to defend against it, so he gracefully took the damage. His life points were now down to seven hundred and fifty. I did good!

"Nice job!" The praise was genuine, real. He didn't mind losing some life points to me. "Using an equip card on your dragon was a good way to gain a better offense. I can tell that you and your deck are already starting to get to know each other." There he went again, was speaking as though these cards were alive.

The game went on and I began to learn more. Like how there were different types of traps and spell cards. For in traps there were counters, continuous, and normal types. Then there were also a lot of spell types to learn about like normal, field, ritual, continuous, quick-play and equip. I had to get to know all of the cards in my deck and learn how to use them correctly, in order to be victorious. It was enough to make me scratch my head at times. Getting to know my deck seemed like an awful lot of work, wasn't it? Could it worth the time? If my interest in the game continued, then maybe.

However, even though I was improving, I was not good enough to win against Yugi. He outsmarted me with his combination of Dark Magician and Magical Hats. That was an interesting move. "Haha, you beat me!" I laughed. I didn't think I would win, but that was still entertaining.

"But it was fun! I'd love to practice with you more," he chimed.

"What's with all the ruckus?" Grandpa sang out as he came up from the shop. "Abigal, you aren't giving Yugi a hard time again, are you?"

"Grandpa!" I told him I was too old for those tricks!

"No, Grandpa. We had a duel." Yugi explained with a radiant smile. Grandpa blinked, peering towards me as I had a look of gracious defeat. He paused for a moment then laughed. Grandpa, came over and hugged the two of us for being such good sports at playing his favourite game. A hug like this felt great. It been awhile since someone really hugged me. I had only been apart of this family for a day but it felt like I was getting closer to them.

The next day, Yugi and I showed up to school together. I found Ryou at his desk, the lips on my face stretched from each corner as he glimpsed in my direction. Hold on… I was smiling naturally? This was different and completely not the image I planned on carrying while at school. But I could not help it.

"So, I played Duel Monster for the first time, yesterday," I said, throwing my backpack to the back of my seat.

"Really? How was it?" He was just as ecstatic as me. "I would like to hear all about it."

It was like I was just waiting for him to ask. "Well, Grandpa helped me put together my own deck. And taught me about using certain cards in battle." I rocked in my chair while going on about this game, the words just bubbling up. "Then Yugi challenged me to a practice duel. Since I was new to the game, he thought it would be a good idea to practice." Ryou just nodded in agreement while listening to my story. "It was my first time playing, so I had a few rough moments. But Yugi was good at teaching me what I needed to know."

"Sounds like you've found yourself something to be excited about." Ryou smiled at me, with his cheek resting in the palm of his hand, leaning slightly to the right. His body language and the attention he was giving me really spoke 'interest', as I continued to talk about this new game I had discovered. Was he interested in me talking about Duel Monsters or was it something else?

I nodded. "Yup. Though Yugi beat me, I feel like I could get better at this game!" Ryou gave an amused chuckle, then dug out his own deck from his backpack and passed me a monster card named Morphing Jar. It was a creepy looking card. That eyed creature had a toothy smile that could give anyone nightmares but he said it might come in handy. "But this is your card, don't you want it?" I asked, concerned about keeping it. I didn't want to trade with Joey at all yesterday, and Ryou was just giving me a card?

"Don't worry about it. I have two more," Ryou told me, waving his hands at the idea of me being worry about a card. "Besides, think of it as a part of me being in your deck. So you know that I'll always have your back."

The cheeks on my face were hot and red. This guy was incredibly cute and sweet. And he just kept doing more things to prove that he was. I was cautious, however. It made it difficult to truly accept his small acts of kindness. I liked him, but another part of me was saying not to get too close, that it might be a trap. I put Morphing Jar in my deck regardless, then looked back at him, unable to think of anything else to say. All of my steam blew out, as it were. He was still watching me, the smile ever present on his face. My heart thumped loudly, my face getting hotter. I quickly turned away from him and just poured my focus into a Japanese literature book.

During recess, Yugi, his friends and I, along with Ryou, all gathered into a group. Joey and Yugi were playing a game of Duel Monsters. Again. Maybe this was a daily occurrence? I came up with the idea of challenging Joey to a match, to see if our training had made a difference yet. It had only been one day, but it was worth testing out, right? When I sat in front of him, butterflies started to flutter in my stomach.

"Just relax, Abigal. You'll do fine," Yugi coached.

I nodded and took a deep breath, then our duel began. Since I challenge Joey, it was his first turn to move. His first card was Axe Raider, a pretty powerful monster, on his first turn. I would really have to focus and study which cards to use against him. I was in luck, the card I drew just had enough attack points to overpower his Axe Raider.

"I'll play Sword Arm of Dragon," I summoned to the field. I noticed Joey did not put anything down in his trap and spell zone. So I was free to attack. "I use my dinosaur to attack your warrior." Axe Raider had seventeen hundred attack points while my Sword Arm of Dragon had one thousand seven hundred and fifty attack points. A small number gone from his life points, but it was still fifty points.

"That was a lucky move," Joey grumbled. I placed a card faced down as I ended my turn. "Be prepared, Abs, I'll make tools out of your dinosaur bones!" he taunted. At moments like these, I really had to practice my poker face. I could not let him know that I wanted him to fall for my trap. "Now I summon Battle Steer!" That monster had enough attack points to take out my dinosaur. However… "Now I attack your Sword Arm of Dragon!" I smirked. "What's with that look?" he questioned when he noticed it, his eyes going down to the cards on the field. "Don't tell me you laid a trap!"

"Precisely." I flipped my face down trap card. "Desert Sunlight. This trap card forces my monster into defense mode. So you just attack a monster with greater defense points than your monster's attack." Joey lost two hundred and thirty life points because of my trap.

People from around the classroom began to surround us, wondering what the commotion was. I heard some people betting on who they want to win. Someone voted on the me, the new girl, and some of the girls were hoping Joey would win. Ah, who cares who won this duel? I just wanted to test out my skills with someone on my level. The friends in our group felt the same way about not caring who won or lost.

"Now I summon Alexandrite Dragon, in attack mode," I notified, scanning Joey's side of the field for any possible trap cards. I still did not see any, so maybe I could attack again? "Before I go any further, I'll active this magic card, Pot of Greed, allowing me to draw two more cards." I played one card faced down in my trap zone then attacked Joey's Battle Steer. Leaving Joey with fifteen hundred life points.

"Eh, I have to play a monster face down in defense mode," Joey pouted. "You can get to my life points when they're in defense mode?"

I bit my lip as I looked down at my trap card. It might come in handy but would it be a mistake? My attention shifted to Yugi as I wanted to ask for his opinion. He looked at me then whispered something in my ear.

"Just trust your instincts," his warm breath tickled my ear.

"I am so sorry, Joey," I said as I flipped over my trap card.

"Uh-oh, what kind of trap is that?" Joey muttered, towering over the dueling table. Really trying to peer down at the card I just turned over.

"It known as Dragon's Rage," Yugi answered in my place. "When a dragon-type monster attacks a defense position monster, damage still comes out to the difference."

"Wha? You mean to tell me that I'm not safe, regardless of what I play?" he yelled, grabbing Yugi by the collar of his jacket.

"Does that mean you forfeit the duel?" I smirked with my chin rested on the back of my fingers.

Joey paused for a moment then sat back down in his desk. I believe I had my answer. The guy decided to forfeit the match. Why do I feel bad? He looked so upset. Did I do something wrong? I turned my attention to Yugi, who seemed happy about my victory. I stood up then turned my attention back to Joey. I know I should not care but my heart was telling me to at least do something. Damn my conscience.

"Hey… Joey?" I walked up to him.

"Yeah? What do you want?" He was still moping about his defeat. "Did you come to make fun of me?"

"Why would I do that?" I sternly asked. "You don't really know me yet and you only have to go by how I've been acting the past few days. I will admit I have not actually been acting like my usual self, but I want you to know that I not a mean person. Of course I'm strange, but not cruel."

"What did you come over here for?" He wondered.

"You seemed so down about losing. I wanted to make sure i-if you were okay," I blushed trying to express my concern. Why was I even doing this? This was beyond something I was used to. With no friends back at home, I did not feel the need to do this. So, what did that say about how I felt about Joey?

"You really are a strange person, Abs," he smiled then took out his hand. "No hard feelings?" A natural smile stretched across my face as I grabbed Joey's hand to shake it. Right, no hard feelings.

Joey then complained about Yugi and I having a lot of good cards. Well, Grandpa did own a card shop, so Yugi and I had access to all kinds of different cards. It did give us a nice advantage over the average player, I would admit. Yugi then started talking about the different kinds of cards Grandpa had in his collection, including the Blue-Eyes White Dragon Grandpa mentioned last night. I was told that it was rare, but I didn't realise just how rare until now. There were only four of them ever made and it was said that only true champions were able to have them in their decks. I heard a book slam shut and saw a guy glaring at us through the corner of his eye.

That guy looked like he could kill someone with that glare. His intimidating eyes of blue were staring in our direction. I would admit that he was handsome, but nothing to want my interest. "Who's that?" I asked, frowning. I didn't get anything pleasant from him, that was for sure.

"That's Seto Kaiba. He owns a company called Kaiba Corp.," Joey answered.

"Really? He owns a company at his age? What's he doing in school then?" I was astounded. If I owned a company, I certainly wouldn't be in school. If I still wanted an education, I'd be homeschooled. I watched as Seto suddenly storm out of the classroom without a word, his backpack in hand. It didn't look like he would be returning. That must be nice, to be able to come and go at school whenever it suited him. Why was he so angry, though?

After school, we went home with Yugi's friends tagging along. Joey wanted to have another look around the shop, to find some new cards to strengthen his deck. Grandpa was nowhere to be seen. Odd, he should be here. I looked around for a note but came up with nothing. This was really strange. Grandpa didn't strike me as the type to leave without a notice. Tristan assumed he went to the grocery store, but then I remembered that that was suppose to be my chore. His shoes were gone, so where could he have went? Maybe he forgot that he assigned groceries to me and went like Tristan said? We were started getting worried.

Suddenly, the phone rang. Yugi answered it but I stayed close by to hear who it was. It was Seto Kaiba. Something happened to Grandpa and we were told to pick him up at his office. My blood began to boil; who would do such a cruel thing to a weak old man? When I get my hands on that guy, I would make sure he got a taste of his own medicine. All of dropped our belongings and ran straight for Kaiba Corp.. Even though I did not inherit the Moto's shortness, I was slower than everyone else. I did not like running! We arrived just to find our grandfather on the floor, too weak to get up.

"Grandpa!" We all screamed and ran to him.

"What happened to you?" Yugi was almost in tears.

"I wanted to teach him about respect and in the heart of the cards," he winced in pain. "But I failed."

Grandpa was an older man and needed to be cared for. How disrespectful could someone get?! Mom always told me to respect my elders. Seto Kaiba was a mean person. Not considering the well being of an older man. That was cruel. I did not like anyone who picked on the elderly or people who could not defend themselves. Seto stood in the doorway to his office and laughed at our pity. Grandpa was weak and needed to see a doctor right away. However, it would seem that Seto wasn't finished bullying Grandpa. He took the Blue-Eyes from Grandpa and ripped it in two. Now it could never be used in battle against him.

"You monster! You'll pay for picking on my old man!" I hissed as I charged at him, ready to throw a punch but four arms from both Joey and Tristan held me back.

"Calm down, Abs. You'll get us in more trouble than he's worth!" Joey said, struggling to keep me from digging my nails in Seto's face.

"Don't care for your opinion," Seto snickered coolly. Yugi was as furious as I was. "If you're that angry at me, why don't you claim your vengeance by defeating me in a duel."

Teeth gritting together, I stopped struggling against Joey's and Tristan's grips. I could never defeat this guy. According to Tristan, Seto Kaiba was the world champion at Duel Monsters. My dueling skills would be a joke compared to everyone here in the room, let alone the international champion. Going up against a guy like him would be suicide, and more humiliating than I could handle. I had to back down before I made a huge mistake. So Seto's focus turned to Yugi.

"How about you? Do you have what it takes to take vengeance?" Seto taunted.

Yugi paused but Grandpa spoke up. "Take my deck Yugi. I put my heart in these cards. Show what it truly means to believe in the heart of the cards." His weak voice begged for Yugi to carry on.

"But we have to get you to a doctor." Yugi was worried and angry, but trying to keep himself composed.

"That sounds like an excuse to back out, if you ask me," Seto chided, waving dismissively. "Your little friends can take care of the old man."

I scowled deeply, not liking this at all. Seto was baiting one of us to challenge him. For some arrogant reason, I assumed. What a despicable man. But, Yugi was right. Grandpa needed a doctor, and someone should be there for him. "I'll go with Grandpa, Yugi." I placed a hand on his shoulder, to reassure him. If not him, then me.

Yugi let out a heavy sigh. He didn't want to duel. But to defend Grandpa's honor, and to teach Seto a lesson, there was not much of a choice. "Alright, you go with Grandpa…" Yugi accepted.

An ambulance was called. Téa and I would go to the hospital with him while the Joey and Tristan decided to stay back with Yugi for support. I wanted to stay with Yugi, but Grandpa needed me more. I would just have to pray that Yugi would be all right. Grandpa's well being was more important than some silly Duel Monsters game. While I was to the side, I heard Yugi and his friends talking.

"You guys should all go with Grandpa. I'll be fine," Yugi said modestly.

"No way, Yug, we're going to be here to support ya!" Joey told him, determined to stay.

"That's right. Téa will go with Mr. Moto and Abigal," Tristan reassured, sharing the feeling.

Téa got out a marker and marked their hands with something. That was going to be their mark of friendship. Their bond would always be stronger than anything else in the world. For some reason, a tug on my heart was felt when hearing them give their friendship speech. In a way, I envied Yugi for having people like them around him, always willing to go through the flames of hell, with him… for him. To have friendship like that… it would be nice to know what it felt like…

"Don't think we're gonna leave you out, Abs," Joey chimed, wrapping an around about my neck. That surprised me.

"That's right, you're part of our group now," Téa said, taking out the marker and marked my hand with a cute heart. "Even though the ink might eventually wear off, the bond will always be there."

They were… including me in their group? But, we only just met. I didn't even think Téa liked me. How… when did this happen? I was confused. Touched, but confused. How was I supposed to react to this? A part of me knew I shouldn't be questioning it, but I also felt paranoid. Did they really want me in their group? I was Yugi's cousin. They could just be doing it to not leave me out. Did they feel obligated or was this free will? This was... something I didn't have back at home. I did not care to want it, back at in England. Back in England, the other kids didn't bother with me either. But… these people were good to me. They invited me to sit with them, they played with me, hung out with me. In spite of my rude introduction, they never treated me like an outsider. That, in addition to the symbol drawn on my hand, made my heart flutter warmly, happily. But, even though I was happy that these people wanted to be a part of my life, should I let them in?

There wasn't much more time to think on it. The ambulance arrived and the paramedics hurriedly brought Grandpa aboard. Téa and I hopped into the ambulance, as the paramedics secured Grandpa's bindings, readying him for transport. The smell of alcohol and other medicines were making me nauseous, the medical tools made me anxious. No more than Grandpa did, however. Grandpa looked like he was in a lot of pain. His heart was weak and something could have happened to mess with his pace maker.

When we arrived to the hospital, the paramedics took Grandpa into the emergency room. We went to the waiting room. I began pacing in the waiting area, getting more anxious about what could be happening with my grandfather. The staff or another patient had the television on, and I heard the voices of Yugi and Seto float around the room. Seto was trying to bait Yugi again and- Wait a minute, hold on... this was Yugi's match back at Kaiba Corp? The match was being broadcasted? Seto never said anything about this when I was there. If Yugi lost, the whole world would see it! He would be even more humiliated! Shamefully, I admit that I was glad that I had backed down while I still had the chance now. And what was that Yugi was on? Some kind of platform? Those monsters in front of him looked like Duel Monsters. Was that some kind state of the art dueling arena? When I looked at Yugi, I noticed something about him with different. His hair was a bit more crown, not to mention his eyes more serious, compared to his innocent child-like nature. Just by looking at him, I could sense something different about him. I was unable to tell from the hospital if it was good or bad. I just hoped whatever was going on with Yugi, would grant him victory.

"Who's that battling Kaiba?" asked a random kid.

"That's Yugi Moto," Téa said with pride obvious in her voice.

I was half paying attention. Between hoping Grandpa was alright and watching the duel, it was hard to focus on one thing at a time. Though, the battle did not look like it was off to a good start for Yugi. Seto seemed like he was battling circles around him. Whenever I glanced up at the screen, something new would be happening. He had a Blue-Eyes White Dragon out against him. So, this guy already had a Blue-Eyes of his own. Why would he tear up Grandpa's? He could have just kept it for himself, if he loved the card that much. Instead of picking on a defenseless old man! In a blink, there was another Blue-Eyes. And then another. My blood ran cold as I stared at the screen, my eyes wide. He had three? Yugi said there were only four of them, and Seto Kaiba had three?! Was that why…? To keep the only other card in existence from being in someone else's hand? Not only that, but Yugi was up against all three at once. It seemed utterly hopeless.

But then Yugi said something that struck me as odd. "You may have a strong deck, but I have something that you don't."

"Oh yeah, what's that?" Seto smirked, unable to believe Yugi had anything good to defend himself with.

"My grandpa always taught me to believe in the heart of the cards. So that when I'm in a tight spot, my cards will always come through for me." There he went again, talking like these cards have life in them. Was there more to this game of duel monsters than I anticipated? I needed to know more. Did the heart of the cards truly affect the outcome of a duel? How did one access the heart?

The doctor came to let us know that Grandpa was doing alright. Téa and I went to the room to see how he's doing. I was so relieved to see him conscious and alert. I sat down in a seat next to his bed and asked me where Yugi was. I told him about the duel he was in and Grandpa ordered one of us to quickly turn on the TV. I hope not much happened while learning Grandpa was feeling well. However, Yugi was facing not one but three of the most powerful monster in the game. Those three cards were what makes his deck so unstoppable. How could Yugi face against all three of them at once? His life points were so low that one wrong move and he was done for.

"Yugi can't lose. Grandpa's honour is stake," I said clutching my fists.

Yugi continued to hang by a rope with what little life points he had left. I looked down at the mark on my hand, tracing my thumb around the ink heart. I hope Yugi remembered the vow that was made. Standing there in the hospital, I realized that family was most important. After losing my parents, a part of me was trying to cling on to what family I had left; Grandpa and Yugi. Grandpa had to survive, and Yugi would win against Seto. I just had to believe in him. "You may have all kinds of money and powerful monsters," Yugi continued, his voice calm and steady. "But that all means nothing when you don't have faith in yourself and in those who are there for you no matter what." I watched with anticipation as Yugi drew his next card. I felt my heart flutter. My breath hitched while the hairs on my neck stood straight. All I could do was wait for that card to be revealed, knowing that this card would be the one to decide the fate of the duel. "You see, Kaiba, sometimes cards are like a puzzle. Weak alone, but when brought together with other pieces they are unstoppable."

"What!? There's no way that he could have..." Seto's voice trembled as the look of fear followed.

"That's right, Kaiba." Yugi smirked, almost smug in his assured victory. "While you were boasting about having the strongest monsters, I was assembling the five pieces of... Exodia!"

"No! It can't be!" Seto screamed.

Yugi began to explain that when someone has all five pieces of Exodia in their hand, they automatically win the duel. "Exodia, obliterate!" There was a blast of virtual power, the light so bright that both players were hidden from the camera. When the light subsided, the results were clear as day. Seto was trembling on his podium, pale and obviously clammy. That was a move he was clearly not expecting. And because of it, Yugi won the match. The self proclaimed champion duelist was defeated by a local high school boy. Seto fell to his knees, the shock of the attack wearing off. Anger with how he lost replaced it. Téa and I were happy! Yugi put the bully in his place! It didn't fix the torn up card, but at least Yugi stood up to him. Friendship and humbleness was a powerful thing. I still had a lot to learn about Duel Monsters and about having real friends. But, as time went on, maybe I would be come to accept my new life.


	4. Whatever it takes

Joey had been coming over to the house the past week for private lessons in Duel Monsters. With him coming over, I was about to get some idea of what I should know about my own deck and apply it for effective strategies. Knowing my deck was important in understanding how to use them correctly. I was glad Grandpa went easier on me, when it came to teaching me how to play. Why was Grandpa going easier on me? Did he think I was not capable of pushing myself? Or did he think I needed a more gentle approach? Maybe it was a good thing he didn't push me too hard, Grandpa was making Joey give it his all. Yugi taught me more by practicing during our free time. I would ask Yugi questions about the cards in my deck, and he would answer the best way he could. I felt like we had been getting closer by spending time together like this. I had also began to get to know the rest of Yugi's friends. They were not so bad once I let my guard down around them. I knew that was a big risk for me but I trusted Yugi more than anyone.

While we were gathered around in the living room Grandpa came in with a package for Yugi.

"Who's it from, Yugi?" Téa asked.

"It's from Industrial Illusions," Yugi eagerly replied.

"How come you got mail from them?" I wondered, then paused as I had no idea who or what that is. "Who are they exactly?"

"That's the company that created the Duel Monsters game," Joey explained.

"I see," I said as I peered down at the mystery box. That was awfully strange, for a company as big as the creators of Duel Monster, to be contacting Yugi personally. How did they know about Yugi or his mailing address? This made me a little uncomfortable, but it could be good news. "Wonder what's in it..."

The championship duel happening in Tokyo was live on television, drew our attention away from the parcel. The match was between Weevil Underwood, the Insect specialist, and Rex Raptor, the Dino Duelist. The bowl hair cut on the insect duelist grossed me out a bit; no one really wore that haircut anymore. Not only that, but with that look on his face, he seemed malicious in nature. He was not someone I believed I would be able to trust. I had my money on Raptor because he looked more tough than that insect duelist. Though, size does not always matter. Both of these kids look about my age or younger.

"So, are these duelists any good, Yug?" Joey asked, gesturing to the screen. I wondered that, too, however I didn't feel like talking over the television. These duelist looked tough, I bet they'd be able to duel circles around me and maybe other shapes besides. As if I would get the chance to go up against those guys. They were champion duelist… I was simply a novice. At least Joey and I have something in common; our new interest in Duel Monsters, and we were both amateurs.

"Yes, Weevil is a strategist while Raptor uses his monsters' powers to overwhelm his opponents," Yugi explained.

"So, there are different methods to defeating your opponent?" I wondered.

"Yeah. Everyone plays differently," he said with a short smile. "It's all a matter what works for you."

I pondered about my what kind of dueling strategy I use get accustomed to. I looked through my deck and stopped at first monster I drew, which was one of my fairy dragons. With myself laid back into the couch I admire the design on it. The dragon was kind of cute, green little guy with petite wings. No sign of legs or arms. I kept admiring the card in my hand until I heard klrrrr sound.

"What was that?" I said aloud.

"What was what, Abigal?" Téa looked at me as I put my card back into my deck.

I paused for a minute, trying to hear it again but all I could hear was the television. "Never mind," I shook of the question. Where did that sound come from? Surely not from the Fairy Dragon.

The sound of the crowd cheering from the television redirected attention. Maybe I was going crazy for hearing such sounds. But Rex Raptor and Weevil Underwood were battling for the championship cup, so I wanted to pay closer eye on this duel, maybe I could learn something to apply to my own style. Rex played a Twin-headed T-Rex monster then Weevil played a weak bug card and placed a card faced down. Rex was quick to fall for Weevil's trap. Forcing his dinosaur to be unable to attack. Weevil then equipped his monster with some kind of magic card, which gave his insect a big power boost. Enough to destroy Rex's monster. Eventually, the game was over and Weevil won the match.

"That was a good match," I heard Yugi say as I walked into the kitchen to fetch a drink.

"Yugi, you were caught up in the tournament that you forgot about your package," Grandpa said. He seemed more eager about the parcel than Yugi did, though I was a little eager to know what was inside as well.

"Oh right," he said as he opened it up. I was still in the kitchen, gathering cookies on a plate for everyone to snack on.

I heard Tristan say that there was a glove, two gold star chips, two cards and a video tape. There was nothing else in the box so they figured that the tape would have more information. I heard the voice of very prestigious sounding man from the television, addressing himself to Yugi. He said he would like to congrate Yugi on his victory with Seto and would like to personally invite Yugi to participate in the Duelist Kingdom tournament, that he was hosting, in a week. As I walked towards the group, in the living room. Everything started to grow cold and dark. I couldn't move but I could still hear and see, though it seemed like everyone else was frozen in time.

What was going on? Why couldn't I move my body? I panicked in my frozen state. How could this happen? My heart pounded against my chest. Where was this power coming from? I kept trying to move myself closer to Yugi but nothing. It was like my entire physical body was shackled by darkness. I shifted my attention to the television screen, my eyes were the only part of me that could still move, and I could hear everything. My mind and body felt as if they were disconnected from the material world. Like reality was non-existent for the moment. Even though I could not move my head, I still tried to look down at my physical body, there was no sign of breathing, but the warmth of my breath touched my nostrils. I could not move anything! Why?

Joey, Tristan, Téa and Grandpa were all frozen, like they were unable to do anything. How was it that I was still able to see Yugi and the picture on the television screen? The person responsible for all this was Maximillion Pegasus, the man who created duel monsters. This was getting really strange. Pegasus challenged Yugi to a duel. But how could this happen against a recording? Yugi agreed to the match, idea of Pegasus putting all of us in danger made him angry. I could see the puzzle around in his neck glow. Magic? But how? I thought it was just a piece of ancient jewelry. His voice was deeper and I felt something else, like it wasn't actually Yugi anymore but his body remained the same. Was this the same thing that happened during his duel with Seto Kaiba?

As the duel began, Pegasus explained that the world he took Yugi was called the Shadow Realm. The place where the monsters actually come to life and someone's soul will be captured when there was a loser. I did not think Pegasus was aware that I was able to know everything that was going on. What? Was this man serious? Someone was going to lose their soul? Whose soul did he plan on taking? And there was no way that these monsters are real. Yugi then summoned a monster named Koumori Dragon but it got caught by Pegasus's trap, Dragon Capture Jar. That was a trap card that takes a dragon from the opponent. Pegasus was able to predict Yugi's moves, that was the conclusion I came up with. But how? Every play that Yugi was making was not successful. Then Pegasus explained that he too had a Millennium Item called the Millennium Eye and he planned on taking Yugi's puzzle for himself. He had no regular left eye so the golden item took its place.

"What if I told you that the game we're playing wasn't actually created by me?" Pegasus asked. "That this game was created a very long time ago."

"What?" Both of us were shocked.

"That's right, Little Yugi. About five thousand years ago, Egyptians used to summon these monsters for power, bringing about mass destruction. A brave Pharaoh sealed away these monsters in stone tablets and only those trusted were allowed to use these monsters," Pegasus explained. "So, as you see, I did not create the game. Just revived it to modern society."

If that were true, wouldn't that mean bringing this game back to life cause a possible impending doom to the Earth once again? What if someone could access the powers like Pegasus and use it for more evil purposes? What kind of madness have Pegasus revived into modern society? If they were so dangerous, then what makes anyone think they wouldn't be so dangerous now? This had to be a joke.

Not all of us are bad, I heard a majestic male voice say over my anxiety. Struggling to shift my eyes around the room, the voice came from the monster Yugi just put out to play; Dark Magician.

Now I knew I was going crazy. It just sounded like that magician could talk. There was no possible way! I kept my eyes on the playing field, long enough to see the Dark Magician glancing in my direction before attacking Pegasus's monster. This had to be dream! A Duel Monster just spoke to me and I could understand his words! And because of Dark Magician and his faith in the heart of the cards, Yugi started to have lead on Pegasus but, sadly, the fifteen minute time limit on this duel was up. It was over. Yugi failed to meet the challenge through no fault of his own. Pegasus wanted Yugi to play in the tournament and "no" was not going to be an answer. Before the tape turned off, a light beam of magic shot out of Pegasus's golden eye and hit Grandpa. Within a blink of my violet eyes, I saw Grandpa calling out to Yugi from the television screen as everyone was able to move again.

I fell to my knees, stunned by what I just witnessed. This could not be happening! This man has Grandpa's soul! First my parents, and now Grandpa? How come everyone I chose to get close to always got taken away from me? Maybe I was cursed, destined to have no family. Téa then came over to me and wrapped a comforting arm around my back. I was too much in shock to fight off Téa's embrace. Yugi was yelling for Grandpa at the screen. I could not blame him, both of us had no idea what was going on. Joey and Tristan both looked at each other, oblivious to the situation.

"He took Grandpa," I breathed.

"Who are you talking about?" Joey questioned as he knelt down to me with a hand on my back. "You mean Pegasus?" I forced a nod as I looked down at the floor, refusing to give anyone eye contact.

"But how?" Tristan raised his tone, clenching his fist.

"Whatever magic Pegasus was using took the soul from Grandpa," Yugi hit his fist to the floor. I found myself crawling over to Yugi. He was enraged from not being able to protect Grandpa. "How come you were able to know what happened in the shadow realm?" His weeping eyes shifted towards me.

"I… I don't know," I softly said, with my head down. "All I know is that that was an experience I never want to happen again."

"What was it like?" Téa wondered, sounding concerned.

"Cold and terrifying. Like, my body was restrained while my mind was still full functional," I said without giving eye contact. My mouth moved but I tried hard to not think about it. My eyes shifted to Grandpa, who was passed out on the floor. This was going to be a hard one to explain…

...I laid in my bed, wide awake as the final part of the week crept up. Grandpa was admitted into the hospital. We had no choice but to put him there and we explained to the doctor what happened, without telling him about magic or who the perpetrator was. While the man did not seem to believe us, he agreed to take care of him until we came home. It was quiet in the house, there were no lights on. All I could hear were the soft murmurs of the refrigerator. I wondered if Yugi was still awake. It would be a big day for him tomorrow, so maybe he was asleep by now. We hardly spoke throughout the week. Not like we did not have anything to say but words could not come out. I would take care of the meals like usual, but it was heartbreaking to set the table for just two people, rather than three. However, Yugi had not given up. There was still determination. The brightness of the moon's light glistening from the window above. I just looked up at the night sky, pondering on what was yet to come. I came to the conclusion that my dueling skills must improve, in order to save Grandpa. In all my life, I never knew that a card game would be the one thing that could save my family from disaster.

I came up with an idea. My body jolted out of bed before the moment could pass. I got out a burgundy glove from the closet, I made sure it was right shade, then began to make my own Duelist Kingdom gauntlet. I started by cutting off the fingers as far as the second knuckle, sewing up the ends to make it more neat. Then I began to think about to use for rest of the glove. For the details, to make it look authentic, I would have to be clever. Then I got the idea of using cardboard. Grandpa gets a lot of that since he owns a card shop. I ran down the stairs and brought up the boxes up to work my magic. Hopefully, I could make this work.

Before I knew it, daybreak was just peaking over the horizon. My eyes were really heavy by now, but I did it. My glove looks almost identical to Yugi's, I even made fake stars and glued them inside the right star holes. Once I got admitted to the tournament, I could get rid of it. This was only to get me far enough to make it look like I was in the game. Yugi was more experienced in dueling, so I couldn't actually compete… could I? I looked at the time then gave a heavy yawn. I was at my desk all night finishing this project, some sleep could do me good, I simply laid my head down on my arms and drifted off to sleep. Dreams started to take hold. Nothing I ever dream were usually good. But this time it was.

My entire family was having a picnic. My mother and father, Yugi and Grandpa, and I. I had no memory of other relatives. So this was my only and real family. Yugi and I were our current age, all of us were chatting and laughing over deli ham and cheese sandwiches. Mom served everyone soda to drink. My father was the way he was before the spell broke, joyous and happy. This was paradise. Everyone seemed so happy and at peace. I was in love with this moment. No chaos, just love. No interruptions of evil forces and my mother was alive. Could this moment be any better?

My eyes then scanned the scene once again, but I this time saw something in the distance. It was an armored soldier. Greenish human flesh on the face but that was the only bit of flesh to be seen. The rest of his body was covered in blue and green armor. He held a shield and a mighty sword. The mysterious person just stood there, eyes directly on me. This was the same person that kept showing up in some of my other dreams. Could he be a Duel Monster? If so, which one? I tried calling out to him, but I got no answer. His purple eyes kept looking in my direction, like he was staring straight into my mind. As I kept looking at him, a wordless conversation was spoken between us. Should I trust him? I tried calling out again, but there was no reply. I looked to Yugi and the other, no one seemed to notice that I was raising my voice at this strange man in armor.

"What do you want from me?" I screamed.

"I need you to wake up!" I jolted out of my desk chair as Yugi rudely yelled in my ear.

I looked up at Yugi from the warm carpet floor. All of that was a dream? Of course, my parents are dead and Grandpa was captured, I couldn't allow myself to be caught in the illusions of my dreams. Yugi was in front of me and I was sure he would understand how I was feeling but I could not show him my emotional pain. Not because I didn't trust him but I didn't want him to feel any worse about the situation. He looked like he has own emotions were settled and he was fully determined to tackle whatever challenges awaited him.

"You spent the whole night making this?" he asked as he noticed my handy work.

"Yeah. I just need it to get as far as Duelist Kingdom. When I get there, I can just keep a low profile," I shrugged hoping he would approve. The really did look almost identical to Yugi's authentic one.

"You did a good job, even the places where the stars go look legit," Yugi complimented.

"Thanks." I blushed, rubbing that back of my head. "We better start packing."

As the day went on, we started packing a knapsack each. I started packing the necessities, like clean underwear and soap. Then I thought about food. I looked through the cupboards and picked out any quick canned foods. I took the manual can opener from the drawer and put that in the bag along with plastic bowls and eating utensils. Maybe a pot will do as well. I hated the reason for all this gear. Why couldn't I simply live a normal life with Yugi and Grandpa? Maybe this was my punishment for wanting more.

It was time. Everyone pitched in together to pay for a taxi to take us to the dock. Joey was determined to enter in this tournament as well. He was going to help us get Grandpa back. After we got to the dock, there was no sign of Téa or Tristan. Where could they have gone? We were rushed by the dockers to get on the boat. I hoped they found a way to make it safely on board. I quickly put on my fake duelist glove. Getting on to the boat was easier than I thought, having a gauntlet was proof that I was invited. One of the security guards looked at me, he glared in my direction, like he knew something was up. Did my glove not look the part or was it because of how I was acting? Sweat poured from my neck, I was so nervous. I had to practice my poker face, it could save me in the long run. If these men knew something was up, I would not be able to help Yugi save Grandpa.

I looked over my shoulder to notice Yugi and Joey were nowhere to be seen. I spotted them still at the security pass. There were issues with Joey getting on to the ship. The guard did not see any star chips in Joey's possession, which a contestant needed in order to participate in the tournament. Yugi, being the kind person he was, gave Joey one of his two star chips, even though that was a risky move. But it did not bother him and, because of that, Joey was able to get onto the ship.

"Look at all the duelists." Yugi was in awe as we settled to the main deck. There were people from different parts of the world. I spotted Rex Raptor and Weevil Underwood among the crowd.

"This is amazing. There's so many!" Joey gawked, echoing the sentiment.

Most of the people were sat down with each other, either trading or practice dueling. A lot of these duelists looked really serious, which was intimidating; I didn't think I could stand a chance against any one of these people. Joey, however, ran over to some people in hopes to get some good trades. His enthusiasm was relaxing, somehow. With all this tension in the room, some positivity could do us good.

"You must be Yugi Moto," said the sly guy with beetle glasses. Everything about this kid gave me the creeps. I was aware that this was Weevil from the championships, but seeing that bowl style haircut in person was even less attractive. I felt like getting the bug spray and pouring it over him. I remembered the last time a beetle came across my path, it did not end well. Maybe one of us could have the opportunity to stomp on him, like that beetle.

"And you're Weevil Underwood. We seen your match on TV. Congratulations on winning." Yugi smiled, his praise genuine and sincere.

I was looking at myself in the mirror. I picked an outfit to make myself look a little like I meant business. Purple turtleneck shirt with a V cut out at the chest, showing cleavage, but maybe it could attract a few duels? I patted off my black spandex that went down as far as my knees. My socks were cute, yellow with black stripes at the end of them, which rose mid leg. For footwear I thought it would be best to wear something comfortable, in my case a simple pair of black flats did justice. The cut from that day left a scar on my cheek. Was that going to be my reminder? That Calcifer caused a world of pain for me? I sighed as I fixed up my hair, this bang was a little less attractive but there was no arguing with this one. I noticed Weevil staring at me, I watched him from the corner of the mirror. He was talking to Yugi but I think he wanted to know more about me.

"Do you know who that girl is by the mirror?" the bug duelist asked, gesturing to me for emphasis. My lip curled slightly; I wasn't sure if I appreciated his interest.

"Yes, she's my cousin," Yugi answered straightly.

"She's pretty cute," Weevil commented, and my skin crawled. Perhaps he could be a nice guy, I really shouldn't be judging him, but… no, I was not appreciating it at all. "Does she duel?" he then questioned.

"Well, she's fairly new at it, so her dueling skills aren't as advanced." My cousin looked over his shoulder at me.

"Such a shame. A novice like her will be kicked out of the tournament fast." Weevil snickered. That sleaze, I could tell he by his tone that he was plotting something. This was making me even more uncomfortable. Two boys were talking about me as I fixed myself. Shaking my head, I tuned them out and continued on my way. I walked around the corner and glanced down at the glove on my arm. It was already starting to fall apart. Of course it was, it was only made from cheap cloth and cupboard. It was nothing like the real ones that let these duelists participate in the tournament. Maybe, if I could get my hands on an actual dueling gauntlet, I could-

No! I told myself I was not going to participate. But this was my chance to improve on my dueling skills. I had to figure out a way to get rid of the fake and switch for a real one. I looked around and noticed there were a couple of kids that didn't have their gloves on yet. Joey was still trading cards with people and I just walked around everyone and plotted how I could go about switch out the gloves, without anyone noticing. If Yugi found out about this, he'd be furious. I was doing this for Grandpa! That was my excuse. I came across the kids on the floor, dueling against each other. I made it look like I tripped over someone's foot and landed flat on my face. Through the commotion and confusion, I wouldas about to sneak my fake in and grabbed the real one and-.

"Are you okay, miss?" asked a kid.

Oh, crap, they were speaking to me! What should I do?! "Yeah, sorry. I was just thinking and forgot to look at where I was going." I knocked myself on the head, my tongue poking out briefly in a childish attempt to play cute. Play dumb, maybe they wouldn't suspect anything and I could get away. I turned away and cursed at myself for being so weird. Even though the plan work, that really hurt. The floor was not worth kissing. I had to make sure there was not any blood coming from anywhere on my face. Luckily, I managed to avoid major injuries. What was I thinking?

"Are you on this boat for this tournament as well?" ask one of the boys. I nodded, deciding it was best that I said nothing more on the subject. I didn't want to give myself away.. "Would you like to duel with us?" he asked.

"Uh… Sure." I was a little hesitant, but maybe practicing with them would not be such a bad idea. "I'm a little new at this game. So, forgive me if I make silly mistakes."

"Hang on, before we start, you should tell us how you were able to get in this tournament," said another kid. He was much more serious. I could tell he did not trust me. He was right to, but I still couldn't help feeling insulted. I raised a brow at him, urging him to continue. "If you're a novice, then how could you enter in the tournament? Only duelists deemed worthy in Pegasus's eyes were invited."

Damn, this kid had a point. I had to come up with a reasonable explanation. If I told them that ancient magic might be involved, they would never believe me and they might tell security. "You see, Pegasus is a distant relative of mine. Once he heard about my new interest in his creation, he invited me to come his tournament." That was the best excuse I could come up with? There was no way these guys would believe me.

"I see! Pegasus was proud of you and wanted you to participate in something he created." The kinder of the two boys smiled genuinely. I was surprised. He bought it? This kid kind of reminded me of Yugi, with his way of thinking and trustful nature. "So, what's your name?"

"Abigal Lungfur," I replied. Maybe I should take this opportunity to work on my social skills. The tournament could be good for that, too, right? "W-what's yours?"

"I'm Keagan Hotoma," he answered, smiling. He seemed friendly; I almost felt bad for lying to him. "This is my older brother, Tory Hotoma."

I could see the resemblance, now that I was looking at them. Both had dark blue eyes and similar facial structures. Tory's hair was blonde while Keagan was a redhead. I was unsure about how old these boys were, but Tory seemed to be my age. They invited me to duel with so I agreed. Not only would this improve on my own skills but knowing theirs could come as an advantage. We began the duel! Keagan was a Plant-Type user. I never seen much of these types before, so I would have to pay extra attention. He played a Mystic Tomato card then placed a card facedown to end his turn.

"I play my Twin-Headed Fire Dragon in attack mode," I summoned. Since my monster had more attack points than his tomato, I decided to battle.

According to Keagan, Mystic Tomato had a special effect; the ability to summon a dark monster with fifteen hundred attack or less. What? Monsters can have special abilities? That was cool! I smiled. Keagan seemed to be having fun playing with me, as I was. The duel was great, I actually won my first practice match, most of my duels with Yugi ended in failure. Keagan was a good sport and lost gracefully. Tory dueled me next, and he was taking it way more seriously even though this was only practice. We started our duel together.

"I summon a monster facedown and a card facedown." His eyes were like fire, staring straight into mine. Like he, too, was here for a purpose. Even though I could not help but admire his spark, I had my own reasons to improve myself.

I looked through the cards in my hand. I have a pretty strong monster in my hand known as Alexandrite Dragon, however, he had a facedown card. This might be a trap. "I play the magic card Mountain, then summon Alexandrite Dragon to the field." I smirked. Sadly, I was right about his face down card. It was a trap called Trap Hole. It destroyed my dragon as soon as I summoned it.

"Fine then. I put a card faced down and then end my turn," I said, feeling the flames of my own soul burning within the practice duel.

When he summoned a monster called Bean Soldier, I could not help chuckling. A green bean with a sword. Looking at it tickled me enough to laugh out loud. "What are you laughing at?" Tory was being snippy. "You won't be laughing when I equip it with this magic card: Vile Germ."

"Your monster is a bean," I answered, still snickering. Even though it had fourteen hundred attack points, I could not take it seriously. "All jokes aside, I activate my magic card. It known as Silver's Cry. This card allows me to bring back a dragon from the graveyard," I explained. "I summon my Alexandrite Dragon back to the field."

As the game continued, I learned that Tory was a better duelist than his little brother. He attacked my Soul Tiger, which to his surprise had a lot more defense points than he anticipated. Tory took his dueling very seriously and in all honesty, I had to as well. For the sake of my grandfather, I had to. Being able to duel these guys really helped me improve. Tory lost our match, but only because I managed to outsmart him with my fusion combination of Dragoness the Wicked Knight, equipped with the magic card, Dragonic Attack. We both decided it was time to give it a break after that duel.

I picked up my cards and took the original gauntlet, leaving my fake with them, then went to find the rest of my friends. There was no sign of Joey, Yugi or even that Weevil kid. I started calling out for them. I hope they didn't wander too far, but then again it was a ship, they could not go very far otherwise they'd fall into the ocean. Oh no… Did they fall off the ship somehow? I picked up the pace as my search for them intensified. What if something really did happen to them? I could not afford to lose Yugi! As I was running along the perimeter, I came across Weevil who had a devilish grin spread across his face, he looked at me from the corner of his glasses. What did he do? I ran faster to find them. I kept searching until I found Téa and Tristan pulling Joey and Yugi into the boat.

"Oh my gosh, what happened?" I screamed, rushing to them. I felt Yugi's face to make sure he was alright.

"Weevil threw my Exodia cards overboard." He sounded upset as he pulled away from me, not wanting me fussing over him. Those were Grandpa's cards, and cards that Yugi intended to use to save Grandpa's soul. He must have been devastated.

My hands balled into fists as they fell to my sides, shaking in my anger. "He did what?" I growled. "I'll have a few words with him!" I turned to go find that sleaze, but Yugi gently caught my wrist. I looked down at him to see him shake his head at me. I conceded, bowing my head absently, submitting to his protest.

"Sorry, Yug, I'm no good. I couldn't get them for you." Joey lowered his head.

"Joey, you can't be thinking like that. It wasn't your fault," Yugi told him.

Joey then explained to us about how he had a sister name Serenity. Ever since she was small she had bad eyes. After their parents' divorce, the two siblings were separated. They hadn't seen each other in years. But, apparently, Serenity's eyesight was bad. She needed surgery to correct it before it was too late. But of course it would not be cheap. That was why Joey entered the tournament, to get the prize money of three million dollars. A cause just as worthy as mine and Yugi's. With all of us fighting for someone we love, would this cause for hassle than we asked for?


	5. Promise

As we arrived to the Duelist Kingdom island, everyone began to work their way up the stairs. In order for us to get Pegasus, we have to play along in his twisted tournament. This was our chance to take back our lives and bring Pegasus down. The tension in the air from all the determined duelist was overwhelming, I couldn't help but feel nervous. About participating illegally, and judging by all these people, I have a lot of competition. I didn't have the nerve to focus… I was so overcome guilt, for stealing that kid's glove, I could not keep myself composed. I was being too obvious. My hand shook as I fixed my hair behind my ears. Then I felt a hand on my shoulder, this was Tristan.

"You look really nervous, Abby. Don't feel so bad, I know you'll pull through for Mr. Moto," he reassured me.

I took a deep breath and then everyone started walking up the stairs to get to Pegasus's castle. As we walked our way up, Téa mentioned that she thought she saw Ryou in the forest. I sharply turned towards the trees, but no one was there. If only Ryou was here, my nerves might not so wound up. I frowned, getting my hopes up a little too high… I did wish he were here. Pegasus made his appearance to announce the rules of the tournament as we reached the top of the stairs. Everyone must get at least ten star chips to be able to enter the castle, where we would be able to compete for the championship finals and be able to battle against Pegasus himself. This was what we wanted, to be able to duel against this man for all the pain he has caused.

After all the duelists were dispatched, Yugi went searching for Weevil, to get payback for what he did on the boat, so his friends and I all followed. We found Weevil, but we ended up chasing that brat through the forest and to an open plain. Weevil began to explain that there are secrets about this island that very few people know about, like how this island was full of big dueling arenas. All of them were installed underground and would appear once a duel had been initiated. This guy was a cheat? Weevil knew about secret of the island that everyone else were oblivious to? That put Yugi at a disadvantage. But how did it work? Was there a button to press when we wanted a duel?

"It's time for you to answer for what you did on the boat, Weevil!" Yugi was furious and with that came the glow of his Millennium Puzzle. I looked at Yugi with confusion, it always baffled me to see that happen. Especially when it felt like I was the only who really the noticed the change in his personality. However, when I look at his face, I feel some sort of connection, stronger than the one Yugi and I already had. There were so many questions that ran through my thoughts like, was this someone else in Yugi's body? If so, were they good? Where did they come from? What was their name?

Yugi and Weevil began their battle. People gathered around to witness the duel between Yugi, the kid who defeated Seto, and Weevil, the recent regional champion. It was also one of the first duels of the tournament, and people wanted to see how these dueling platforms worked. But, Yugi did not have Exodia this time something that Weevil knew. He would have to figure out a way to win without it. As the duel progressed, we learned of the new rules the tournament implemented. Apparently, the dueling platforms had power boosts depending on the surrounding environment, for the corresponding monsters that live in such habitats. It made sense. Insects in the real world live, primarily, in forested areas. It would be reasonable for insect monster to gain extra field point advantage from the forest area on the platform. But that also meant that Weevil purposely led Yugi to this field, where he would have a significant advantage over him.

"Who's that battling Weevil up there?" asked a blonde woman, looking about eighteen years old. I could tell from her body language that this woman was all about the business. A woman who took no crap from anyone. That was impression I got from her. Her violet eyes were like the fire, searching for a reason to pounce any of us with her duel monsters.

"That's Yugi Moto," Téa said, proudly. I had to admit, it was pleasing to hear when Téa spoke about Yugi like that. No matter who she was speaking to, Yugi was always worthy of her praise.

"The Yugi Moto? The kid who beat Seto Kaiba?" This woman sounded impressed but that changed when she opened her mouth again. "Even though he beat Kaiba, there's no way he can beat Weevil. Yugi had Exodia to help him win the duel however, this is a tournament and that means he playing a whole new game. Weevil is totally out of his league."

"I bet you wish you were the one pouncing Weevil with your dueling skills," I commented.

"Mai Valentine is always up for a good challenge. I could take both of those losers any day," she said with confidence. Or was it arrogance? I couldn't rightly tell the difference with her.

Mai Valentine, huh? Interesting person, she was. I hated to admit it, but this woman might have been right about one thing. This a different game from what we were used to. Every duelist was at Duelist Kingdom for their own reason and that makes the tournament more challenging. They had motivation to give it their all. Some were participating for the title and there were people doing it for the money, then there are people like us, dueling for the sake of our loved ones.

"You're wrong about a few things thing…" I spoke up, trying to keep my cool. While I looked composed, inside I was battling with my anxiety.

"And what's that?" She snickered as I could tell everyone was staring at me, waiting for what I wanted to say.

I swallowed, uneasy about speaking up like this. I had to say something, Yugi needed support. His eyes were directed on me, waiting for me to say something. "First of all, Yugi is no loser. Secondly, Yugi is dueling with everyone he loves in heart. His heart is not only in his chest, but in his cards. That means we are also there with him when he's dueling," I said, not taking my eyes off him for a moment. Was this right? Was this what Grandpa meant by trusting in the heart of the cards? "Even if it's tough, he knows that he's not alone."

"Good luck with that," Mai scoffed, waving her hand. "There's more to dueling than just having heart. You need skill and plenty of it."

With that said, he was struggling with this duel and needed a card to turn it all around. Weevil's bugs were pestering Yugi's dueling strategies, stumping him at every turn. Eventually, Weevil was able to get his most powerful monster on the field: The Great Moth. That moth had over twenty-six hundred attack points. Plus, the poison from its wings weakened all of Yugi's monsters by two hundred points. This came as a greater challenge for Yugi. How could he defeat something that poisoned his monsters? I squeezed my arm, hoping that what I said wasn't just a bluff. When Yugi drew a card for his next turn, he gave me a smile. Did he draw something to turn this duel around? Yugi first played the magic card, Makiu, The Magical Mist, which soaked the playing field with heavy water. He then called forth Summoned Skull. With the attack of Yugi's monster, the duel was over. The first victory of the island! Yugi claimed all of the two star chips that Weevil had and added it to his dueling glove. Joey claimed Weevil gauntlet, since he would not be needing it anymore.

Seeing Joey swipe the unneeded glove had me remembering what I had done on the ship. I looked down at the dueling gauntlet on my right hand while my fingers ran through my hair. I felt guilty for it. They seemed like nice people. But, it was done now. I had to do something to ease my mind from the shame I brought upon myself, or else I would never be able to focus on dueling. Suddenly, I heard screaming coming from somewhere nearby. Curiosity pulled me to see what the commotion was about. As I got closer, I recognized who it was. Tory and Keagan were fighting with the security guards.

"Your dueling glove is a fake! Only real gloves with real star chips can be worn by a duelist," said a man in a black suit. Tory looked like he was about to cry before his attention was brought to me. No, I was caught! I had an idea that this was going to happen eventually, but I had to get out of here quick before they say something-

"There she is!" Tory yelled, pointing accusingly at me. "That's the one who switched out her fake glove with my real one!"

Dang it…

Keagan ran over to me, confused and unbelieving. "Is it true? Did you really steal my brother's dueling gauntlet?" My heart broke when I looked into his innocent eyes. I knew it was wrong. I didn't think I would have to face the consequences so soon. But, that was the problem, wasn't it? I didn't think of the consequences. I gave a nod, unable to keep eye contact. "Why did you do it? I thought we could be friends."

Yugi and everyone else finally caught up to me and heard everything. He looked at me with disappointment in his eyes. "Abigal, is this true?" His voice and personality was the same as the duel with Weevil. I felt like I had no choice but to be honest.

"Y-yes, I switch out the glove, that I spent a full night making, out with an authentic one," I confessed quietly, shifting nervously under all of the gazes upon me. "I did have intention to just throw it away when got on the island, I just..." My shoulders slumped, my head hanging from my guilt. "I just wanted to help. In anyway I could…"

"So you picked on an innocent kid's glove to substitute your own?" Joey scolded.

"I'm very disappointed in you, Abigal. Grandpa wouldn't want someone cheating their way to save him," Yugi said sternly, but not unkind. His arms crossed over his chest, I could feel the disappointment he spoke of.

I could feel a tight ball form in my throat. They were right to scold me, they were right to be upset with me. I brought this upon myself. I had to think of another way to keep myself on the island and do what was right at the same time. Yugi was right, Grandpa would not have wanted this. I took a deep breath and look directly at Tory. "I'll duel you for it," I stated, pointing to him.

"What?" Tory was shocked. "Why should I do that?!"

That was a good question; why should he? The glove was rightfully his in the first place. I had to say something to provoke him into agreeing. "I easily beat you on the boat. So if you think you're actually worthy of this glove, you should duel me for it!" I yelled.

There was a pause in his rage. He seemed offended, and his anger just increased. "Fine!" Tory accepted with a growl. "I'll duel you, but don't think you're going to win so easily this time."

With that said, the ground began to shake as a dueling platform raised from under us. This was amazing, giant platforms to screen our duels as they are played. I stepped up on the blue side and Tory on the red side. I could really feel the tension of disappointment and anger coming those around. All of my friends and Yugi were upset, I doubt they would trust me after this. For now, I need to focus on the duel. I could think of a way to make it up to them afterward, if they would let me. Tory went first for the duel. He placed a monster faced down and a card in his trap and magic card zone and ended his turn. For my first turn, I summoned Blackland Fire Dragon to my side of the field. My dragon has fifteen hundred points, so I took the risk of attack his face down monster. I destroyed his Laughing Flower but his life points were not touched.

"You're not going to win if you go on the defensive on the first move," I taunted, trying to remain calm and collected. My hands were shaking, though. I disliked having upset my friends so soon after getting them.

Tory growled, gritting his teeth. "You'll see that my deck is full of surprises!"

We were dueling back and forth. I would destroyed a monster, then he would destroy one of my monsters. It was almost like we were evenly matched. But then the duel started to turn in his favour when he was able to summon King Orchid of the Forest. This card has twenty-nine hundred attack points. That was bad. The only thing that can really save me now was the trap card I had laid out. He declared an attack on my Alexandrite Dragon. I activated my trap card Desert Sunlight, which changed all my monsters to face-up defense position, however, he was still able to defeat it. I just saved my three hundred life points from going down to zero.

I lowered my head, trying to think on what I should do next. I absently glanced over at Yugi. He was watching me carefully. Even though there was still disappointment in his eyes, I could tell that he still wanted me to make this journey with the rest of my friends. What should I do? I had to make things right… But how?

Apologize… said a soft, sweet voice. I looked around confused about where the voice was coming from. You need tell him your feelings. If you can do that, you'll win this duel. I looked down at my hand; it seemed like the voice was coming from Dunames Dark Witch, the card I just drew from my deck. Even though I might be going crazy, this fairy was right. I had to tell Tory the truth, maybe he would understand.

"Listen, Tory…" I began. He looked at me, still with a cold expression on his face. "I'm sorry for what I did to you. It was unfair of me to do such a thing, even when you and your brother were nice enough to practice dueling with me on our way to this island."

"What is she doing?" I heard Téa whisper to Yugi.

"She's releasing herself from the guilt that she caused." He didn't take his eyes off of me for a second. Just studied me, like he was waiting to see if I would go through with it.

"Why did you do it!? Answer me that! And I want the full truth!" he screamed at me, his anger obvious. Could I blame him? Of course not, I was responsible for this madness. I wanted to help Yugi with his quest to face Pegasus. But, what I done created more chaos. I looked to my cousin and he gave me a firm nod. Tory deserved to know the truth. I was unsure if it was right for me to do so but Yugi also thought it was right for me. I winced at the emotional storm raging from my mind.

"Abigal, please tell us the truth. I don't want to believe that you're a bad person!" Keagan begged.

I took a deep breath and nodded. How could I say no to that? They deserved to know my motive. "About a couple weeks ago I turned sixteen years old." Start at the beginning, it was for the best. I had to remind myself of that. I was wary. Yugi, Joey, Téa and Tristan could all hear me and I hadn't told them any of this yet. But it had to be done. "I lost my parents that same day, my birthday. I couldn't do anything to prevent them from being taken from me. I moved to Domino City to start a new life, living with my grandfather." My voice was shaking, I was scared to share this truth. What if they didn't believe me? "As I was starting to get use to my new life, something happened to Grandpa and now he's in the hospital. If I don't help Yugi do what it takes to make him healthy again, I'll just keep blaming myself." I paused, my lip wrinkling. I didn't like doing this, but I realised I didn't like hurting people more. "There's no excuse for what I done to you but please find it in your heart to believe me and forgive as well." I looked at Tory, my eyes stinging with tears. I couldn't hide it this time, the obvious pain in my heart.

"Is that really true?" Keagan asked quietly, remorsefully.

"Sadly, it is," Yugi answered with a nod. "Tragedy is a hard thing to move on from." He looked at Keagan. "I understand that she is scared of being alone. She needs to learn that her friends will always be there for her."

"But what she did was still wrong. No one should cheat at anything," Joey added, agreeing.

"Poor Abby," Téa said, pouting. I could hear the empathy in her voice. "We never knew the pain she was feeling."

"Abigal is strange and is not very trusting of other but also remember she's very sincere. When you get to know her, she actually a very good person," Yugi stated. "I just hope she learns for her mistakes," he muttered softly.

I hung my head. I knew what I did was wrong, but I still did it anyway. What kind of person did that make me? Calcifer would be the only person to approve of what I had done. But I did not want to be like him. I wanted to be a better person than he could ever be. "Abigal!" Tory called out to me. I lifted my face, noticing that there was change in his expression. He did not seem angry anymore, just disappointed. "Make your move," he urged gently.

I looked in my hand and noticed a couple of spell cards in my hand. This was my chance to win the match. First, I activated the spell card Polymerization and fused Dunames Dark Witch with Meteor Dragon and summoned First of the Dragons. A powerful dragon with twenty seven hundred attack points. A long serpentine dragon with dark blue scales descended from the sky, flapping its powerful wings, giving a powerful roar at Tory's King Orchid of the Forest. I then played the spell card Dragon Treasure. Even though this card added three thousand attack points to my First of the Dragons, it still wasn't enough to bring his life points down to zero, so I activated the magic card Pot of Greed, allowing me to draw two more cards.

My luck improved. "I activate the field magic card Mountains. That will give my dragon an extra two hundred attack points, and enough to take the rest of your life points." Tory's eyes widened in surprise, knowing exactly what that meant. "Now I attack your King."

Tory had no magic or trap cards on his side of the field to defend himself. We were both evenly tied with three hundred life points but I managed to bring his down to zero with that one final attack. I… did it. I won. My first official duel against someone that wasn't Yugi, or Joey. Yet, somehow, I didn't feel victorious. I could hear Joey, Tristan and Téa cheering as I won the match. Tory came over to me as I jumped off the dueling platform.

I kept my head down. I was still ashamed of what I did. Even though I won, I didn't feel like I had the right to look him in the eye. "Thank you, Abigal," he murmured. He was... what?

"W-why are you thanking me? I did a horrible thing." I was confused, and surprised. That was unexpected.

"It's true that what did was wrong, but I forgive you. I'm thanking you for being honest with me." I was baffled to see Tory smiling at me. Sad and defeated, but still a smile. I saw another set of blue eyes looking at me. That was Keagan peering up at me from under my pout. I jolted back when I realised how close they both were, startled. Coincidentally, I bumped into Yugi in the process, who also had a gentle smile stretching across his face.

"We're sorry for your loss, Abigal," Keagan said softly. "I hope your quest to help Yugi is successful." He really meant that, didn't he? It was… nice. His sincere attitude was refreshing, and promising. "Just don't forget about everyone who truly care about you in long run."

"And no more cheating, okay?" Tory added, holding out his hand for me to shake.

I was grateful for these two boys. They helped me open my eyes. If it was not for this duel and being honest with Tory, I would not able to win this match. Somehow, clearing my emotions allowed me to connect with my deck better and think clearly about the challenges ahead. Not just the challenges, but the consequences of my actions. Cheating my way through situations was not going to get me anywhere. My parents wouldn't want that and neither would Grandpa.

"Honesty really is the best policy. I won't do it again." I took Tory and shook it. It was a promise. Not just to him, my new friend, but to myself as well. I would do better. I would help Yugi with my skills, not through cheap tricks.


	6. Reassurance and doubt

We came across another obstacle in this road to get to the castle. Yugi was forced to duel against Kaiba, again, however this guy wasn't actually Kaiba, just someone who looked like him and was using his deck. We met Mokuba, Seto Kaiba's younger brother, who was captured by Pegasus as bait to bring Kaiba to the island. Whether that's actually working is a mystery all in its own.

When I laid eyes on Blue-eyes White dragon again, it seemed a bit different from before. Last time I saw it, the dragon felt like just a hologram, however, when Yugi managed to take control of one of them I could feel a warm light radiating from it. Like, being under the control of a different duelist actually helps this dragon repossess the light it already had. Even though I've convinced myself that I might be going crazy, the feeling I get from these monsters is so real that accepting what-come-what-may from these cards was the best option for me. No one will ever find out about this… I don't think my friends will believe me if I told them.

Yugi won that duel against fake Kaiba, Mokuba managed to escape and we ran after him. We were hoping that maybe if he stuck with us, the kid might have a better chance of being out Pegasus's grasp. We lost him though, so now we think that Mokuba was recaptured. With an innocent kid captured and our grandfather, Pegasus must be brought down no "ands", "ifs", or "buts" to consider.

Next we came across Mai again, even though Joey beat that woman she's still looking for a way to bring him down. This time, instead of dueling herself, she has arranged for Joey to duel again Rex Raptor, the guy who came second in the regional championships. Joey was a little hesitant about this duel but to protect his honor, he accepted. Though, mostly everyone was against it, afraid that he'll be kicked out of the tournament. I just kept my mouth shut, I didn't want cause any trouble. Tristan kept talking like he was some child and that really ticked Joey enough to make him shove his best friend to the ground.

As Joey was preparing for battle, Tristan ran to cool himself off and Yugi went after him. So, it was up to Tea and I to coach the blondie into keeping his head in the game. As the duel began I notice Rex looking at me with a little blush on his face. I raised a brow at him, unsure at what he was trying to hint at.

"Hey, Joey, is that your girlfriend down there? The black haired one," he asked.

"Um, no…" Joey also raised a brow at this kid. "... That's Yugi's cousin."

"Hey Tuts, you wanna go on a date with after this duel is over?" Rex asked me. I just looked at him with disgust on my face. The nerve of him to ask if I wanted to go out with him while he's dueling with my friend. Obviously he has no sense of priority.

"Not even in your dreams, Pal!" I barked at him.

Mai even started to complain and bark orders to Rex to get back to focusing on the duel. I shook my head at this guy and hope Joey really gets rid of him. So the duel continued, Yugi and Tristan came back in time to see Joey turning this duel around with his Swamp and Lava Battleguard combo played on the field. Swamp Battleguard was Joey's card and Lava Battleguard was Tristan card that was given to Joey before this whole mess started.

Rex then summoned a monster that is said to rival the powers of the Blue-eyes white dragon; the Red-eyes Black Dragon. When I saw this dragon, I think I fell in love. This dragon looked so... Beautiful. It's a rare card and powerful one. My heart raced as I watch the battle continue. At one moment Red-Eyes gazed down at me, look directly into my eyes and both of us were in a trance.

"What's going on? How come Red-Eyes is looking at Abigal like that?" I heard Yugi say.

"Uh... Red-Eyes... You okay?" Rex called out to it.

I blinked then everything went back to normal. That was weird. Even Téa thought so. I've seen some pretty weird thing happen to me since I been playing duel monsters but this was different. Anyways, Joey managed to win the game with his Time Wizard, along with some star chips and Rex's dragon.

This was only first night of the duelist kingdom tournament. We all sat together in the forest to relax. However, we needed some food. Joey and Tristan were complaining and I... Well I was getting really tired. The lack of sleep on the boat is catching up on me.

We all started walking around and Joey found a mushroom. Tristan held him back and Yugi told him about wild mushrooms being poisonous. I kept yawning and hugging my legs. Téa seemed concern because really did look tired but I had to stay awake until we got some food in our systems.

Mai showed up again but this time she seemed a bit different. She even offered us some of our food. Then I remembered that I have a backpack full of food as well. The boys scolded me for even forgetting I packed food. They quickly forgot once they saw I had some good stuff to eat. Even the can opener was in my bag. The blonde woman told the boys to go get something for the campfire. Yugi went to get some firewood and the other two goofballs to get some water.

As we waited for them to come back Mai mentioned that there was a shower we could use. I was pretty impressed that this island actually had resources like this. But then maybe Pegasus would get in a lot of trouble if he didn't at least... Provide.

"I've got to ask you Téa, why do you hangout with these boys anyways?" Mai asked.

"Well, that's an obvious question to answer," Téa said from inside the shower. "They're my friends."

"But boys like them aren't very useful at all. Most of them are only good for heavy lifting and taking orders," Mai said.

"I'll have to disagree with you there, Mai," I interrupted. She looked at me from the corner of her eyes. I could tell she doesn't like to know how wrong she is. "Aside from being Yugi's cousin, I think these boys are the best that ever happened to me. Everyone, including Tea has been good to me, especially since I really needed a friend to lean on… Them and one other person."

"You're talking about Bakura, right?" Tea said from inside the shower.

I jumped when she said that though she was not wrong about that. Ryou and I have been getting rather close since the day we met. He was there the day I arrived to Domino City, when I was just about to give up he helped me. Ryou's white hair and brown eyes always attracted me to some extent, even though he's good to me there is still something about him that makes me unsure about him.

After I got my shower, Joey had a meal cooked up for everyone to enjoy. Everyone was sat down and enjoying the ability to relax and eat. I had to admit, Joey put together a nice meal for all of us. Different... but nice. We sat in silence until Yugi mentioned how many star chips already had.

"Listen Yugi, don't playing this whole nice charade, it's only a matter of time before we-" Mai was cut off but not before I gave her a glare.

"Can we not talk about the tournament for one night?" Tea asked.

Luckily, everyone agreed. I did not like how Mai was about to down about Yugi. That kid is not faking about who he is. My cousin is the most genuine person anyone could ask for. He never fakes his kindness, that's how much Mai does not know about Yugi Mote. If she continued talking like that I think I would have slapped her.

After the meal was over and dishes were cleaned up. Mai went for a walk and I laid down on the ground, using my backpack as a pillow. It felt so nice to be able to relax again. Though, I could not help but miss Grandpa and his jolly laugh. Now that I started thinking about him, it made me depressed to think about what could have happened or what should have happened to prevent this whole situation. I could not let anyone see me like this, so I made sure that I was facing away from everyone. There was a crack in the woods, however I didn't move to see what it was.

"It's not a wild animal is it?" I heard Joey say as I kept myself facing away from everyone. All I remember is; someone saying that they're going to check it out and then dreams took hold.

It's daytime already? And I'm in a flower field? How did I get here? I was on an island before. But the flowers are so pretty with daisies everywhere. I could even smell them. The feeling of wanting to play in the fauna field was so strong. All I could do was laugh for being so happy in such a beautiful spot. It all feels so good even the sunlight makes me at peace but suddenly I felt rain on my cheek and everything feels so cold.

It is like... The weather is changing to whatever emotion I might be feeling. Why am I feeling sad? I was happy just a minute ago. Then I looked straight and saw Mother with Grandpa. I tried running to them but I tripped on something, I noticed my knee was injured from the rock that made me fall. When I looked back up Mom didn't seem to notice me neither did Grandpa.

"No one really cares about you, Abigal," said a voice from the sky. I looked up and it was the face of my father forming in the dark clouds, with his evil being released. "Everyone has abandoned you. You're all alone."

"No... You're wrong!" I yelled at him. "I have Yugi and Ryou and..."

"And where are they now? Huh? I don't see them anywhere," my evil father laughed. He has to be right, they are nowhere to be seen.

I ran around hoping to find someone but there wasn't a soul. I'm all alone, like it has always been... By myself with no one to lean but my own. I had nothing. With feelings of despair taking over me, I felt myself sinking in the ground.

"Go into the ground where you belong Abigal. No need for a gravestone because no one will even know you're here," my father continued to laugh.

As I sank into darkness of the mud I heard someone screaming out to me. That's when I took a deep gasp of air and jolted awake. I had no time to think about where everyone was to, I ended up bumping heads with someone.

"Sorry about..." I paused as I realized who I bumped into. "R-Ryou!"

The poor guy was rubbing his forehead because of me. I apologize very sincerely, I was almost in tears because of what just happened. My head is rather hard and I came up extremely fast from that nightmare.

"It's okay Abigal, I'm just glad that you're okay. That seemed like a pretty horrible nightmare... I never seen someone express so many emotions in a dream at one time," Ryou put a hand on my head.

Yugi and the others seemed pretty worried, too. I didn't realize how tired I was, being able to slip off into the dream world so quickly. According to Joey I was dreaming like that for a good half hour. But then Ryou got worried and felt like it was time to wake me up.

"What were you dreaming about?" Ryou put a hand on my back for comfort.

I stayed silence for a moment.

"I haven't told you the details of my past Ryou but… In this dream my father was taunting me and laughing for being so helpless…" I explained. "Grandpa and Mother were there but they didn't see me. I wanted to touch them so badly but no what I did I couldn't reach them. Then my father explained to me about how alone I was. No friends around and just the feelings of despair at my shoulders, I couldn't help but feel weighed down."

"It sounds like your father was a bad man," Ryou said taking his hand down from my back.

Yugi looked at me with a frown on his face.

"You don't need to feel that way anymore, Abigal. Most us of know how your life was before you came to Domino City. You should know that you'll always have us to lean on," my cousin reassured me.

"That's right. You can always count on us to be there for you in times of need," Tea joined in.

I looked around at everyone. Tristan and Joey gave me a nod to give their five cents worth. To let me know I'll also have theml. Water flowed from my eyes as I was so happy to know that I'm not actually alone. There's no need for more to feel lonely when I have people who care about me.

"Thank you, everyone. I appreciate it… Sorry for crying…" I sobbed.

"It's okay, Abigal. We're just glad that you're going to be okay," Ryou told me.

To help me take my mind off that dream we all started discussing duel monsters. Yugi commented on how well Joey and I have improved. Ryou smiled at me with his gentle eyes. Joey was staring at a card for a moment until Tea asked him why.

"Sometimes, I imagine that I'm the monsters giving my opponents a butt whooping!" Joey smirked feeling kind of silly.

"I think that's perfectly normal, Joey. I believe everyone has a card that they can identify with," Yugi complied.

It's true, everyone has that one card they can call their favourite. I have not really given much thought about my favourite card. I feel like I have some sort of connect with all my monsters. Now that I looked through my dueling deck, I felt like I had to pick one. Yugi's obvious favourite is Dark Magician. Tristan likes the Cyber commander and Tea likes Magician of Faith.

"What about you Abigal? Do you have a card you can identify with?" Ryou and everyone else turned their attention to me.

"Well… I would have to say The All-Seeing White Tiger. For some reason I feel a sense of responsibility coming from this one…" I said feeling a bit silly.

"What's your favourite card, Bakura?" Yugi was curious as was I.

"This is my favourite card," he said revealing a magic card called Change of Heart. Ryou suggested that we all play a game of duel monsters, so he can demonstrate how it really works. "How about each of put the cards you've chosen into Yugi's deck, so it would be like we're all playing."

Joey teased about how we're all in the Yugi's deck that we'll be hard to beat in this game. But before we started the duel there was something Ryou wanted to show us. He became humming, revealing a ring around his neck. It's was a millennium item, similar to Yugi's, only easier to hide. The world around us starting going dark following a weird sensation like I was forever falling. All I could remember was feeling the pain of hitting the ground. Have I been wrong about Ryou this whole time?


	7. Mystery Warrior

The only thing I could remember was a powerful voice calling out to me. It was not Yugi's nor was it anyone else in the group. When I opened my eyes there was a glow in front of me. The light was in shape of The All-Seeing White Tiger. It didn't look threatening but then it leaped inside my body and I began to feel a transformation. When I opened my eyes, I noticed that I had paws, ears and a tail.

"W-Where am I?" I looked around, then almost jumped out my skin when I noticed Yugi was giant.

"Abigal, you must listen me. Before you start jumping to conclusions I need you to hear me out..." Yugi said. I looked around and noticed Ryou was bigger.

"Are you responsible for this!?" I barked.

"Abigal, please, this isn't some kind of trick and before you start changing your opinion about him, please know that isn't really the Bakura you knew," my cousin explained. "He's possessed by an evil spirit that is contained inside his Millennium Ring."

That would explain the feeling I got from that time in school. But I just overlooked it because Ryou was always so nice me. I did not want to think negative things about him just something did not seem "right", who was I to judge though?

"After this duel I won't be just taking your millennium puzzle, I'll be taking what powers she may possess as well," he said glowering down at me.

"As far as I know I don't have any special powers," I corrected him.

"Don't be so blind. I could tell something was special about you the moment my vessel laid eyes on you. You can see the true being of these monsters, can't you?" The evil Bakura demanded to know information that I'm not even aware of. I always thought that I was going crazy, not have magic of some sort.

With that being said I attacked Dark Bakura's monsters until big Yugi summoned Joey and then Tristan back from the graveyard. So... I'm not the only person that has been transformed into a monster? Then Yugi was summon as the Dark Magician. I had to admit that he looked adorable in that outfit but this was no time to admire clothing.

"Wait, if Yugi is here then who is that big guy in Yugi's body?" Joey asked, a little freaked out.

"Well, sometimes when I'm duelling I feel like there are times when I'm split in two and there's a stronger voice calling out to me," my cousin confess.

"And?" The bigger Yugi wanted the little one to continue.

"And that voice guides me... All I do know is that we can trust him."

"If Yugi is okay with him, then so am I," Tristan said.

So he does notice it. I was starting to think it was only me that noticed these things. The feeling I get from those who wield the millennium items, is the same feeling I got when I first stepped foot on the ground of Domino City. Chaotic. Even if I did have magical powers, I doubt they would bring good, considering my father was so evil.

We had to be careful of what we attacked now. Evil Bakura has been playing Morphing Jars, which could be troublesome because of we go to the graveyard, it's game over. We'd be lost in the shadow realm for eternity. Not sure that I would want to be trapped in there. The only one out of our group, that was left to join us on the field, was Téa. But finally Big Yugi was able to draw her from his deck then summoned her face down. That didn't really work because she ended up materializing, like the rest of us.

Most of the gang tried to cover her up when the imposter Ryou aimed to take me out. His monster was stronger than me. I heard everyone scream out my name then I woke up in a dark mysterious place. It looked like a graveyard, I guess this is where monsters go if they are destroyed somehow. So... Does that mean I'm gonna be trapped in here forever? The smell of dampness in the air lingered around then I heard something from in the sky. I didn't know what that monster was but for some reason my instincts told me to just run.

As I kept on running I would look back every now and then to make sure I lost it but this grim reaper looking monster was hot on my trail, I don't know how much longer I'm going to be to keep this up. I was never any good at sports and using my legs for this kind of thing was not one of my strengths. The air in my lung became like pins and needles, it actually started to hurt to breath but I had to escape from this thing. I don't even know how but I ended up face planting myself to the ground.

"Someone, please help me…" I choked worried about what this monster might do to me.

"Please don't fret. I will defend you," I heard a soft male voice echoing in the air. This voice, it was familiar.

"Who are you?" I asked.

The same light from that day of my birthday appeared in front of me. The grim reaper was stopped by a man in a suit of green and blue armor. I seen this one in my dreams a couple of times but this time he decided to materialized closer to me. I could tell that he wasn't human because his skin is naturally pale green. This reaper couldn't be destroyed so easily but he managed to ward it off for the time being.

"Who I am will be revealed when you return back to your world. Just know that I am here to protect you and I will never let you down. Ever, " the mysterious knight said to me. I heard the voices of my friends calling out to me and a warm light surrounding me. "The battle is over for now. Your friends all want you back with them. Go to them and know that I won't be too far behind. It's time for me to be a part of your dueling deck."

The sound of Yugi's voice came closer and closer as I was pulled further into the light. My eyes slowly awakened as I felt normal again. The first person I laid eyes on was Ryou, I could not help but feel resentful considering what just happened. But Yugi and Joey told me what happened on the playing field. The good Ryou was also sealed into his favourite card, Change of Heart. He did not want to be enslaved by that evil thief spirit anymore. So Yugi somehow switched Ryou with his evil half.

"So it really is just you now?" I asked.

Ryou gave a nod.

"That's great. I apologize for being so overprotective," I looked down.

I felt arms wrap around me along with his soft white hair in my face. This feels so strange to me, I do not think I have gotten a hug from anyone other than Grandpa since I moved to Domino City. He feels so warm and I could tell that he was just as sincere as I have been. My eyes closed and returned the hug. Yugi was blushing a bit and so was Tea, but still admiring that we gave each other a friendly hug.

After everything settled down I remembered the warrior that spoke to me when I was in the other world. Quickly, I took out my deck but I didn't see him anywhere. That kind of made me sad… I was actually hoping that this time I would have a really strong monster in my deck. I guess not. Suddenly, I heard a whisper in the gentle breeze, rustling the trees around us. I stood up, trying to hear what it was. It was calling out my name. Tristan spoke up and wondered what it was I've been hearing. No one else was hearing this voice but I recognized it. It has to be that warrior.

"Abigal, where are you going?" Yugi called out to me as I took off to follow the sound that has calling my name.

"He promised… That he would be there... For me... And that it was time for him to join my deck," I had a hard time talking the same as I was running.

We all came across a small pond. It was dark here I couldn't tell where the drop off to the water has been. I looked around there was no sign of him. Joey whispered to Yugi, I could easily hear them.

"I think she finally lost it," I heard.

"Come on, Abigal. Maybe that was just a dream that you saw. I'm not saying it didn't happen but I don't think anyone is here," Tea put her hand on my shoulder.

I couldn't help but feel disappointed. To know that I could have a guardian monster made me feel excited and maybe evil Ryou was right about my ability. I thought that for once, one of my questions was going to be answered. I wanted to get to know this warrior more… He someone else I can trust… I was really hoping to gain another friend.

_Abigal_... There it is again. I knew I was not just hearing things.

"I'm here! I can hear you, please make yourself known," I called.

The wind really began to pick up now. A strong gust blew my hair to the side. It kept blowing then I looked up at the moon, seeing cards floating in the light. The wind subsided then the cards falling down in front of me. Two cards were in my hand, a magic card to summon the warrior plus the actual monster card.

Yugi peak into my hand and gasped at what it was.

"That's Black Luster Soldier!"


	8. Panic in the Dark

Mai was in trouble, that's the idea we got when we heard a scream from the far edge of the forest. I quickly put Black Luster Soldier in my deck and then ran towards the hollering. When we arrived Mai had the look of defeat on her face, while a beefy, scary man stood behind her. She explained this man is an eliminator, someone who goes around picking on duelist and wiping them of all their star chips. This made me kind of nervous, I only have three starchips.

This man was name Panic and his name really suits him. I could sense an evil tormenting presences about him. He thrives on picking on young duelists, making them slip up because that's how he duels. I would have to admit that I would never be able to beat someone like him, not at my level of experience. He looked at me and laughed, he could tell that I was feeling an agonizing sensation in my stomach from just looking at him.

"It would seem your friend has the right idea about me, she fearing me even though we haven't duel," this man laughed.

"Leave my cousin out of this, Panic," Yugi barked.

"Lemme at him, I'll show that guy who's boss!" Joey was ready to pounce but Tristan stop him. Ryou's hands were on my shoulders to help me relax a bit better. Him doing that really did do the trick.

"No Joey, violence won't help a situation like this," Yugi stepped forward with his head down.

"Then how are we supposed to teach him a lesson?" Tristan asked while keeping Joey from pouncing this guy.

"You stand up to them!" My cousin told us as his Millennium Puzzle began to glow. "I challenge you to a duel, Panic. If I win, you have to promise to give Mai all of her star chips back."

An excellent wager, or so Panic thought. According to Mai, he talks to his opponents and makes them worry about what cards he will play next. He's so manipulative to the point of making people _panic._ Everything about this guy is enough to make anyone want to freak out. Panic only strikes at night, making his duels have the upper hand, all his monsters gets a field point advantage for being played at night. Then on top of that, Yugi's ankles were cuffed to the dueling arena, so matter what happens, he couldn't escape and on top that, at the press of a button flames will shoot at him, to intimidated Yugi even more but as I kept a close look on his face, Yugi did not even flinch. I kind of like this side of Yugi, he's able to stand up to bullies so much better.

As the duel began, we were able to witness the dueling tactics Panic uses to throw his opponents off. First he plays Castle of Dark Illusions, which strouds his side of the field in complete darkness, even on the digital card reader the data was blocked by the shadows. Yugi kept his cool but I could tell that he was starting to wonder about a strategy to shut this guy down. Panic kept blabbering about how he's going to make Yugi squirm in fear, the more I listen to this guy the more I realize that he's all talk and no action.

_Destroy… _I heard. This voice was unlike what I heard before. It was dark and even… Satanic… I had to listen for it again to make sure I wasn't just hearing things. _Destroy him… _

"D-destroy who?" I muttered.

The duel continued with Panic putting out more monsters in the dark cloud and taunting Yugi with his way of dueling. However, Yugi realized what Panic was trying to do and told him that in five turns, Panic was going to lose. This taunting and teasing about his plans really made this bully start to become uneasy. Though the further Yugi pushed on this guy, the more Panic would use the flames to throw him back off his game.

_The light coming from this human… Must destroy it… _I heard again.

I kept hearing these words over and over again in my head. The darkness really does play tricks on the mind but what if this was not some kind of trick? If what happened with Black Luster Soldier meant that somehow duel monsters are real, then how can I explain the feeling I'm getting from Panic's monsters. Every time I watch duel monsters play out the different energy that come from the different types of monsters feel so real. And these monsters playing now are so sinister that I could not help but hold my arms together. The whisper continued more and more, getting louder and louder. At this rate I will go crazy!

"Stop… Stop please, I can't take it," I screamed falling to my knees.

"Abigal, what's the matter?" Ryou tried to hold on me. I fought him off, any touch at this moment doesn't feel right.

"The voices they won't stop," I whimpered. "All this energy… It's too much…"

Yugi looked over at me with complete worry. He wanted to get to me but was unable because of the cuffs.

"Ha ha look at that. The poor girl isn't even dueling me and she gets a dosage of fear from my monster. Ha ha ha ha!" Panic toyed.

"This isn't the same thing, Panic!" My cousin scolded. "There's something wrong with her. If you dare to laugh at her once more I'll make sure your defeat is a tasteful one."

I could hear soft evil chuckles coming Panic's monsters. Even from within the Castle of Dark Illusions. Some were saying that they were unstoppable. Only those who embrace the darkness can become stronger. It's not the actual sounds that bother, it the energy that radiates from these creatures that has me on my knees.

"Yug, you're going to have to finish this duel and quick. Abs is losing it down here and we don't understand why," Joey coached his friend up on the dueling arena.

I am going to lose myself. I feel as if I'm trapped in my own fears, petrified from this duel. So scary, all I want to do is hide but I can't move. Ryou and Tea has been trying to get me on my feet now but my joints are locked. My legs feel like led, hands stuck to my ears like superglue. There's just no moving me.

_Calm down, there is no need to fear the darkness. With the light inside you and the light of your friends around there is nothing to be afraid of, _that voice. My hands began to move on their own and dug into my pocket for the first card in my deck. Black Luster Soldier, I was hearing his voice. _Nothing shall hurt you, always believe in me, your friends and in yourself._

Ryou and Tea tried to help me up one more time but now I was able to move better. It's like his voice was able to break the spell of darkness that was casted upon me. I looked down at Black Luster Soldier and gave a soft smile.

"Thank you," I said to him. Then my eyes shot up at Yugi. "Finish that creep off!"

"With pleasure!" Yugi smirked. "I summon Catapult Turtle!"

"You think that's going to save you? My ultimate shield is impregnable. You really think you can get to my monsters with that strategy?" Panic growled.

"Who said I was aiming at your monsters?" Yugi told him. Panic continued to growl. "I'm aiming for your... Castle of Dark Illusions!"

Yugi's Gaia the Dragon Champion hopped on the turtle's back and prepared to be to launched. The Catapult Turtle gave everything it got into giving Gaia the boost it need to attack the dark castle. When the dust cleared from the attack, only the flotation ring fell off. But how? How can a castle be still standing even without its ring?

"You think you've won this duel? My Castle of Dark Illusions is still standing and your swords are going to be gone once your turn is over," Panic laugh.

"This duel is already over, Panic," Yugi told him. Panic looked at him like he was crazy. Everyone else was wondering what Yugi was really getting at. "Let me put it this way. How do you think a Castle without a flotation ring is still able to stay in the air…?

"No answer? What if I told you that my Swords of Revealing Light are keeping your castle afloat. So, when I end my turn your Castle of Dark Illusions will be coming crumbling down on top of your monsters," Yugi explained. "And with that… I end my turn."

Panic warned his monsters to get out of the way but they couldn't for he them trapped in their own protection. This was not good though. The rage of losing, Panic did not take it all too well. He broke the control to the flamethrowers. Next thing we knew the whole dueling arena was engulfed in flames. I tried running to Yugi but Ryou kept hold of my hand to keep me from going. When the flames calmed down, I could not help but feel relieved that Yugi was okay and Panic was unconscious. I launched myself at him to give my cousin a hug.

I was really worried.

"My Millennium Puzzle was able to protect me from the fire," Yugi smiled.

Everyone celebrated for a moment then Mai was able to get her star chips back. We were all laughing but then Yugi turned to me with a stern look on his face. He comes storming over to me, I was actually kind of afraid of what to expect from him. The only time he made that face at me was when I bullied him when we were kids.

"We need to talk," he said to me.

I gulped.

"Is there something you're not telling me, Abigal?" He's acting more like a brother now rather than just a friend but I tried to play it off.

"I don't know what you're talking about," I looked to the side.

I felt the warm glow of Yugi's Millennium Puzzle on my neck and I knew he was serious. Sweat poured down my neck, knowing at that I cannot escape this.

"Abigal, tell me what happened back there," his voice was more stern than before, I think it's the change in his vocal tone that made it more intimidating.

"If you continue to shoulder this problem you have, all by yourself, it might become too much for you," Tea coached.

"Come on, Abigal, we only wish to help," Ryou soft voice sounded so sincere.

I want to them but for my own reasons… I always thought it was better not telling them, always afraid that they might think of me less, after learning that I'm so different… I can talk to duel monsters and sense the presence. What if I tell them and they just laugh at me?

"I… I can't tell you…" I clutched my fist.

"Why? Why can't you tell me? I'm your cousin and I care about you, if you don't tell me what got you so scared before, I can't help you if it happens again," Yugi was right but…

"There's no way you would believe me!" I argued refusing to look him in the eyes. "You'll probably think I'm going crazy and put me in the hospital or something!"

A pair of arms wrapped around me. This was Yugi, grabbing me tightly with all that he had. He was shaking, not from rage but from the anxiety that he had about me. When he was up there dueling and being tormented by Panic's darkness, he was nervous. Then after seeing me being tormented and laughed at by Panic before and during the duel, Yugi felt more determined to bring that bully down.

Suddenly, I felt more bodies surrounding me. First Tea then Ryou, Tristan and Joey were the last of the group to join for this massive hug. I was stuck in the middle even though it felt good to have such a large hug like this, I started to get smothered.

"Alright! I get it! You care about me! I'll tell you everything!" I yelled.

Everyone laughed then all settled around a campfire to prepare for the story I have to tell them.

"I…" I was really hesitant about how about telling them. "I don't know how or why but it feels like I'm able to hear and communicate with the creatures of duel monsters."

"You serious? Like duel monsters are actually real?" Yugi asked, being his normal self again.

I nodded.

"It all started when I first came across Yugi's Celtic Guardian. Somehow I was able to feel some sort of presence within that card. Then that same day when I asked Grandpa to help me build a deck there were a few other cards that I was able to feel the same kind of presence within.

"However, when Yugi was forced to duel with Pegasus, through the video tape, I was able to keep my consciousness, I just couldn't move my body. During the duel I heard your Dark Magician speak to me, telling me that not all duel monsters are bad. I honestly thought I was going out of my mind, that after losing my parents was starting to take it's toll on me.

"During the duel with Tory I heard one of my cards. She told me to apologize and if I did I would surely win the duel. That's when everything started to become normal. I could sense the living presence of every duel monster cards that we've came across so far," I elucidate the whole story. I was not going to hold back anymore.

Everyone nodded and actually started to think it was all making sense now. Considering what happened with Joey's duel with Rex Raptor. When Rex summoned Red-Eyes Black Dragon, everything seemed to have come to a stand still. Both of us were in a trance that made everyone worry.

"What's the story with Black Luster Soldier?" Ryou asked ever so curious.

"Well... The day when my father tried to kill me a bright light appeared along with the voices of two human-like silhouettes. I was unable to see who it was but all I knew was they saved me that day," I looked down at Black Luster Soldier in my hand. "Then he started appearing in my dreams. Not say anything but just watching over me… But then, during the time Ryou's dark half sent us to the shadow realm and I got trapped in the graveyard, he came for me again but this time Black Luster Soldier made himself known, only I didn't know his name."

"It sounds like he's your guardian of some sort," Tea chimed.

"I'm starting to think that, too. During Yugi's duel with Panic I was really overcome with fear that I couldn't handle myself. All I needed was to hear his voice and that feeling suddenly vanished…"

"What did he say to you that released you from that state?" Yugi asked.

"He told me that with the light inside myself and from my friends, the darkness is nothing to fear. Always believe in him, myself and in my friends," I kept looking down.

Yugi place his hand on mine and looked at me in the eyes. He reassured me once again that I will always have him and everyone else to lean on for help. There's no reason for me to feel afraid or alone anymore. No one is going to hurt me as long as I have my trusted friends around. Who knows, maybe one day I'll understand why I'm the only person who can hear the voices.


	9. Hissy Fit

I must have been really tired that night, I fell asleep and did not hear a sound. Dreamless sleep this time, just so exhausted from the commotion from the duel with Panic, it really took its toll on me. The only thing that woke me up was Téa shaking me awake. I rubbed crusty eyes. That was the best sleep yet I think. Téa opened the flap to the tent and it was super bright this morning. I stretched and changed my underwear for the day. I stuffed the dirty ones in my bag then freshened myself using a rag and cold water.

"That duel with Kaiba really got Joey motivated," Yugi chuckled.

"What duel?" I was confused.

"Kaiba showed up last night. He was planning on storming the castle all by himself. Joey picked a fight with him then duelled against him," that did not sound good as Ryou explained.

"Why didn't anyone wake me up?" I frowned.

"You were sleeping so heavily that we thought it was best for you get some sleep," Téa told me.

I could not argue with that. But I do feel bad for not being there for Joey this time. I then looked down at my glove and sighed. I really do need to step up my game. Having only three star chips and I'm still on the island is just pure luck. Joey and Yugi are the ones that's getting all the duels, I couldn't help but feel pathetic. If I were to go up against Kaiba, I would probably be more humiliated than poor Joey.

I watched everyone laugh and carry on with Joey. This guy is on the same level as me but now he has four star chips. What have I done since I got here? Just pulling schemes on innocent duelist and being tormented by my own brain. I cannot say that it has not been at all productive. I've learned more about myself on this island than I could ever have in a school. Everyone was talking to each other, I decided to slip away from the group. Maybe get lucky and land a duel or two. In order for me to help Grandpa, I need to get better at dueling.

I heard Ryou call out to me but I ran away quickly. I didn't want anyone to follow. I ran long enough to lose them but found myself in swamp area. Kind gross really. All muddy and damp. I didn't think an area like this could be possible on this island. The trees didn't look healthy either, made me kind of concerned.

"Well well well, look what we got here," I turned around to see two smug looking guys. "A little mouse lost its way."

"Hey, I'm no rodent!" I growled with a cute puff of the cheeks.

"What are you doing out in a place like this? Shouldn't you be home with Mommy," they taunted.

I don't have a mother anymore so it kind of offended me when they tormented me like this. I am no rodent and I'm no child either. I don't need the protection of my parents to keep me safe. I could show these guys a thing or two.

One of the guys came over and grabbed my right hand.

"Hey look boss, she only has three star chips," this guy sounded dumb. I struggled to get out of his grasp.

"So she's a rookie. Dueling you should be easy picking," he grinned. "I haven't lost a duel yet."

This guy... Reminds me of a snake, he has grey hair and yellowish eyes, the look in his eyes could make one seize up. Then he'll talk someone down and toy with that person until they're wrapped around his finger. His outfit was filthy just like the rest of his face. But this was my chance to prove something to myself, that I can duel without someone hovering over my shoulder. I had to take this opportunity to get a step closer to rescuing Grandpa.

"I'll duel ya! I aim to win this one!" I looked at him with a complete change of attitude.

The dueling arena for this area came up from the ground. These things are always intimidating, especially with what happened to Yugi during the duel with Panic. To think that something as a advanced like these could have modifications. Though, I have to be brave for this duel. No past of mine is going to taunt me into failing this duel. So I climbed onto the platform and prepared to duel.

"I suppose I'll wager two star chips, considering you only have three. Makes it fair and the stakes for you a bit higher," the kid smirked. "Since I challenged you, it's your first turn."

"Before we start this duel, I want to know your name," I insisted.

"Knowing my name shouldn't be of an importance," he raised a brow.

"But I want to know, so I can use your face to wipe it off the winning list," I taunted.

The guy growled at me. "My name is Silver Viper! It's your turn and I'm the one that going to wipe the floor with you!"

I took a deep breath and gave my hand a good look over before deciding what to do first. I had a Fairy Dragon in my hand. That would be a good start, considering that's the strongest monster in my hand right now. Every other monsters has 900 ATK or less. Then I took a good look at my magic and trap cards.

"Okay, I play Fairy Dragon in attack mode," I chewed on my lips hoping I made the right kind of decision on my first move. "Then I place a card face down and end my turn."

"You really must be a rookie, I can hear your voice shaking from over here," he picked up a card from his deck. "But I'm not going easy on you just because you're cute."

Ugh, I hate it when guys flirt. Especially guys like him, he's creepy enough as it is. Last thing I want is to be thrown off from him trying too hard. I will not let him get the best of me, that's something I have to promise myself.

"He heh, first I activate the magic card Venom Swamp," the field was getting even uglier. "Since we are already battling in the swamp you might think it wouldn't make sense for me to use a field magic card. But I give you a little surprise now," he then plays a monster. "I play Venom Snake, in attack mode. Instead of attacking your monster, I'm going to make it suffer."

Silver's snake pounced my Fairy Dragon, it bit my dragon on the neck then went back to it's side of the field. Fairy dragon seemed fine at first but then seemed to be weakened. I looked at my card reader and it lost ATK points.

"How can this be?" I was shocked.

"Oh I didn't tell you but because of my Venom swamp field card, your monster loses 500 attack points for each venom counter and since my turn is over, your monsters loses another 500 attack," he laughed.

Crap, my Fairy Dragon only has 100 ATK points left. I need to figure out a way to avoid the venom monsters. How would Yugi figure out a way to defeat this guy…? Well first I have to figure out a way to get rid of that Venom Swamp magic card, right? I looked around at my monsters again after drawing for this turn there's nothing in my hand to help me get rid of it.

Morphing Jar… Ryou gave this card to me this first I told him I was getting into duel monsters. He said that this card will always make me feel he's with me. First I have to make sure there's nothing in my hand that could win me the duel first. I continued to chew my bottom lip, hoping I can survive this round. Most of what I had were weak monsters. I'll just have to wing it.

"I place a monster face-down in defense mode," I exhaled and hoped for the best. My poor Fairy Dragon, its attack points went to zero, which meant that it was destroyed now. I looked down. "I'm so sorry…"

"So, you've resorted to defending huh?" My opponent snickered. Little does he know that this face-down monster is actually a trap. "I summon Worm Drake in attack mode!"

Silver had his monster attack my face-down and I smirked.

"What are you smirking about?" He growled.

"You are so caught up in trying to defeat me that you didn't seem to think about why I placed my monster face-down instead of face-up in defense mode," I told him.

"There's no way an amature like you could know how to set up a trap!" He barked.

I revealed my face-down monster to him and this bully looked at bit shocked.

"A Morphing Jar? How did you get that card?"

"I gave it to her," Ryou was here. But how did he find me?

"What are you doing here, Ryou?" I asked.

"Looking for you of course," he said. "Everyone is worried now. First you disappeared then Joey."

"What do you mean Joey is missing?"

"Hey, enough chit chat!" My opponent yelled.

"Anyways, I hope you didn't have anything of use in your hand," I taunted.

I am a little relieved to see Ryou again. I know I may have made the mistake in not telling my friends that I was going duel hunting without telling them. I could only imagine getting another scolding from Yugi but I really did miss them, cheering me on. I don't have my friends, other than Ryou, to support me now. I'll just have to rely on my instincts and Ryou's coaching.

A few of monsters have been taken out so far. But then, some of Silver's reptile monsters were also getting affected by the venom swamp that he played. Though, he doesn't seem to care. I had to say something before I allowed him to continue with his turn.

"Hey Silver, don't you care about your monsters at all?" I asked.

"What are you talking about?" He replied.

"Your swamp poisons every creatures other than your venom monsters, right? You're not only putting my monsters at risk but your own at the same time," I pointed out.

"I've never lost a duel using this strategy yet and I don't plan on losing this one either," he said.

"But how can you win? Your monsters are being poisoned," I tilted my head confused with his attitude. "Don't you care about your monsters?"

"Why should I care about my monsters? They're aren't alive! Even if they were alive I still wouldn't care."

I frowned. How thoughtless, there's no way I could convince that they may in fact be real but when I look at his Drooling Lizard, I could see pain in it's eyes. Just like I could see it in my own monsters. This swamp is toxic, I must do something about it before anymore of our monsters get poisoned. Making anything suffer isn't a way to be. Then I remembered the trap card I placed face-down a few turns ago. If I do this right I might actually be able to turn this duel around. It was his turn to attack.

"Now Drooling Lizard attack her second Fairy Dragon!" He declared his attack, which triggered my trap.

"I activate the trap card, Malevolent Catastrophe!" I called.

"What?" He clenched his teeth.

"Because you declared an attack all magic and trap cards are destroyed," I explained.

"Oh no!" Silver was in shocked

"Oh yes, that means your swamp card is destroyed as well," I smirked.

"Oh well, that's just a minor setback. I have a card strong enough to take you down," he cleared his throat.

"Great job, Abigal, putting that guy in his place!" I heard Ryou cheer.

Even though that was well done. I still lost a monster in that attack. But it was a worthy sacrifice, to set the field right again. I did not like the idea of him destroying his own monsters, except his snakes. Those venom monsters weren't his most powerful monster though, those snakes were actually weak. What else does he have lurking in that deck of his?

So, it's my turn again. I had to do something to change this whole duel around. I was down to 900LP. I need to start drawing cards that can really help me. I just need to believe in myself. I drew the magic Polymerization from my deck and I had two card in my hand that can make a pretty strong monster.

"I activate the magic card, Polymerization… By fusing Armaill and One-eyed shield dragon together, I summon… Dragoness the Wicked Knight!" I announced then I picked another card from my hand. "I'll enhance her powers with this card… Lightning Blade."

My knight stood on the field, waiting for me to give an order. I'm hoping this play works out. I haven't been about to put a dint in his life points, so hopefully with this move I can actually get it down to get it down. I attack his Drooling Lizard, luckily he didn't have any traps this time.

"Well done Abigal! You took down his life points," Ryou said to me as I place a card face-down.

"Don't be celebrating just yet," Silver said drawing his card and smirked as he realized which card he drew. "Now I play my ultimate monster! Gogiga Gagagigo!"

What a weird name for a monster, not to mention a tongue twister. I would never be able to say that ten times fast and I'm pretty sure he had to some practice in learning to pronounce that card's name right. A big lizard warrior stood before me. It looked sinister but the more I looked at it the more I could tell there was a sad story behind this creature. Like, the path for power have drove this creature away from its own soul.

_This is what happens to anyone who strives for power in the wrong direction, _I could hear the voice of Black Luster Soldier. _This creature was once good and had great promise but grew victim to a demon greed and it consumed him._

How sad, I could not help but to take pity on this creature but I still needed to defend myself against it. A creature with 2950 attack points was going to be difficult to beat. The only thing I can do is activate my trap card.

"I activate Desert Sunlight, forcing my monsters into defense mode," I was quick to do this. Sadly, my Dragoness the Wicked Knight was destroyed.

"That's all you can do now, for this is the strong card on the field and a rookie like you could never have a monster stronger than my Gogiga Gagagigo," he laughed.

He could be right but I have not witnessed the true powers of my Black Luster Soldier yet. I needed to draw him from my deck. As I put my hand on the next card to be drawn I could feel his power going through the tips of my fingers. Excellent but I still needed the magic card to summon him. I just have to hope this magic card will help me.

"I activate the magic card Pot of Greed, which allows me to draw two more cards," I said.

Perfect! With that play I was able to the magic I need in order to summon my best card. I looked at Black Luster Soldier and smiled at him. _Thank you for being here for me, I need your power now. I trust in your abilities to win me this duel and to help Yugi and I to save Grandpa. _I spoke to him.

_And I trust you to give me the strength, _he replied.

"You may be a champion duelist but I absolutely must win this duel. I'm here for a purpose, other than for myself," I said to Silver. "Titles mean nothing if you don't have heart."

"What you blabbering on about? Nothing in your deck is going to win you this duel, so stop talking like you know something," my opponent hissed.

"What if I told you, that I do have something in my deck that could win me this duel?"

"Impossible!"

"There's one thing I learned from moving to Domino City and participating in this tournament…"

"And what's that!?"

"NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE!" I howled. "I activate the magic card Black Luster Ritual!"

Silver's eyes widened as he realized what this card might actually mean. I used the two monsters I had in my hand to use as sacrifices. After sacrificing them, flames surrounded the field and the energy from my monster being summoned grew. When the ritual flames subsided there he stood, Black Luster Soldier, the one who has been coming to me in my dreams.

"How can someone like you have one of the rarest cards in duel monsters?" Silver panicked.

"How I got him is none of your concern. How I'm going to use him is what you should be worried about," I asserted. "I'll enhanced Black Luster Soldier's power with the magic card Dragonic Attack! Increasing his attack strength by 500, giving him a total of 3500points. Enough points to destroy your monster and wipe out the rest of your life points."

With that said Black Luster Soldier struck down Silver monster and won me the match. This was a battle that I won all on my own. I was happy! When the area lift put me down I ran over to Ryou and gave him a big hug. He was rather happy to see that I've won as well. When I realized that we hugging so close, I blushed… So did he. Silver handed me his two star chips and just looked down.

"You won't win the next time we duel…" He walked away with his bigger friend, with his head down.

"Now we need to get back to Yugi and the others," Ryou took my hand and ran with me through the woods.

"Do you know... where they are?" I asked talking between breaths.

"Yeah… I was worried about you so they suggest that I go looking for you," he told me.

I blushed as he said that. Ryou cared enough about to consider leaving the other and came after me… Even though I could have taken care of myself, I'm still glad to know that he was worried enough to do so. I squeezed his hand tightly as to say thank you. Ryou stopped when we came across a cliffside.

"This isn't good," he went over to the rock and tried to push.

"What's going on Ryou?" I began to worry.

"They're trapped inside this cave!" Ryou exclaimed.


	10. Not a victory

"This is bad…" I felt like panicking. I could not help but feel responsible for being split up like this.

"Relax Abigal, we'll go through the cave. You guys can try to meet us on the otherside," I heard Yugi from inside the cave.

Yugi was right there was no hope in panic about this. I just have to make use of the time and try my best to catch up to everyone else, while looking for them in the process. Ryou and I began walking our way to find them. The sky became overcast, which would be troublesome, considering we didn't come prepared for any weather changes. Hopefully, it will not rain.

"So, what's your next plan of action?" Ryou asked.

"Well, I'd like to find the people responsible for trapping Yugi and the others in that cave," I kept my head down as we walk through the forest.

"I'm sure you'll get them," he said, being supportive.

We have been walking for quite a while and it rather quiet, almost too quiet. There were no duelists around. Could we already be too late? Nah, it's only the second day in this tournament. I looked down at my dueling glove. Only five star chips. How can I become better at my game if I am just so far behind. I need more duels, to get better, to help Grandpa.

"Well, who do we have here?" Said a man in front of us. His hair was blonde but it was mostly covered with a bandana with the United States flag on it.

"I know you, aren't you Bandit Keith?" Ryou asked.

"Oh, so you heard of me? I'm honored," he said approaching us.

There were three other people with this guy. All these boys, too, were duelists. Maybe this was my chance to get some game in. However, they don't seem like the brightest bunch. The smallest one looked like he had on the face of defeat. I just had to ask.

"Why so glum chum?" I taunted with the raise of a brow.

"I lost a duel…" He muttered.

I snickered.

"Just who were you dueling?" Ryou asking out of curiosity. Zero care for this kid at all.

"Hey just because we lost to that weakling Joey doesn't mean-" Keith barked but I interrupted him.

"You've seen Joey? Where?" I demanded. Somehow, I was beginning to put two and two together.

Keith looked at me for a second. He walked up closer, held on to my face to size me up more. I nipped at his hand I managed to scrape the skin, making it hurt a little. Before I knew it Keith's hand slapped my lips. I growled but Ryou did what he could to hold me back.

"It was you!" I hissed.

"What?" Keith raised a brow.

"You're the one who trapped Yugi and the other in that cave!" I continued to roar at him as Ryou struggled to hold me back.

"Oh so you know those losers?" he chuckled.

"That's my cousin and friends," I finally pushed Ryou off of me.

A dueling arena came up from the ground and it really started to rain. The water from the sky made my hair stick to my face. But I wanted revenge for what they done. Such bullies need to be taken care of and it's about I gave myself some peace of mind.

"Before you start this duel, you should cool your thoughts," Ryou tried to coach me.

"Back off Ryou this duel is mine!" I motioned to get on the platform.

"Abigal please, you have to calm down or else you could risk this duel and your chance to save your Grandpa," he kept hold of my arms.

I shook him off and got onto the platform however, the opponent I was expecting to face was not the right one. Keith got one of his followers to duel in his place. What a coward. Can't even face a girl in battle. But Bandit Keith said that dueling this guy was equivalent to dueling him. He asked me how many star chips do I wish to wager, I asked for two star chips. I looked down at my deck and took a deep breath.

The rain was starting to slack off a bit, but I'm surprised that this arena is still able to work. I mean, it does run on electricity, right? Maybe it's water proof? This interested me a little bit. I looked at the virtual field, seeing that there's mostly mountain areas, some flat land and other types of land.

"Since you're the challenger, you get to make the first move," said the thick guy.

I looked over my hand to see what I should do for my first move.

"I play Winged Guardian of the Fortress," I summoned. "In attack mode."

"Not bad for a rookie," Keith said in the background.

"I'm not done," I told them. "I then activate the magic card Polymerization! I fuse Fairy dragon and Amazon of the Seas together to form: Aqua Dragon."

I don't usually have a good offense so I might as well take the chances I've to make this opportunity. I ended my turn and all my opponent could was defend. If I could keep my opponent on his toes this duel might actually be easy pickings for me.

"Abigal, remember to concentrate! This guy seems to have something up his sleeve," Ryou called from down below.

"What are you talking about? I got this duel in the bag!" I said sounding confident.

"Don't get too confident!" Ryou argued, starting to sound a little angry.

I ignored Ryou's tone. While this guy was building up defenses, I knocking them all down with the awesome offense I've been creating. But then this guy had a Dragon Capture Jar. All my dragons were forced into defense position. This was bad. My good dragons were useless. They weren't allowed to attack.

"You should have listened to me!" Ryou scoffed.

"I don't need to hear it from you!" I barked.

"Hey are you two gonna argue or you gonna duel me?" Said Keith's follower.

I growled. I'm not going to lose this duel. The duel kept going and the more it went on the more Ryou became irritated with me. Why is getting upset with me? He does know that I'm doing this for Yugi and Grandpa. Beating these people will ensure my entrance into the castle. I do not understand why he got that angry look on his face. I looked at Black Luster Soldier in my hand. This was my chance to set the field in my favour.

"I activate the magic card Double Cyclone!" Which destroys a trap or magic card of my choice on my side of the field then a card on my opponent's side of the field and I chose the Dragon Capture Jar. "Then I activate another magic card: Black Luster Ritual. I use the two dragons I just rescued as sacrifices to summon the Black Luster Soldier!"

Bandit Keith was rather surprised to see that I have such a card in my deck. Seems like a lot of people have the same reaction when they see him in my deck. Black Luster Soldier is a legendary card. Very powerful. I equipped him with the Lightning Blade magic card, increasing his attack for 800points. So he's now at 3800ATK. Which was enough for me to win this duel.

I hopped down off that platform and claimed my prize. Three more star chips to add to my glove. I walked over to Ryou, who wouldn't even look at me. I don't understand why is he upset? I won the duel. Now I have seven star chips now, which means I only need three more to get into the castle. But he didn't seem happy that I won…

We walked for a while in silence I began to feel bad about my victory against Bandit Keith. But why? What did I do wrong? I stopped in my muddy tracks. Ryou turned around to look at me. My heart was racing I had no idea what to expect from what I was about to ask.

"Why… Are you mad at me?" I asked with my face hidden under my bangs.

There was silence but then he spoke.

"I'm disappointed that you didn't heed my advice at all during that duel. It's like… My advice didn't matter to you at all," Ryou said. "I thought all of us were a team."

Now I understand. I completely brushed him off during that duel. I felt so confident that I could win the duel with no need of my friends for help. How could I be so ignorant? Ryou was just trying to keep me grounded, while I almost let my anger get the best of me.

"I'm… Sorry…" My voice cracked from the emotions.

There was continued silence until I kept on talking.

"I never had friends before. I never knew what it was like to take advice or have someone by my side to keep my mind on the ground. I'm very sorry, Ryou… I'm still getting used to the idea of having friends so there gonna be times when I break the rules…" This my honest feelings. I really care about him. "Ryou, you were the one who picked me up when I was about to give up. I don't want to lose you as a friend. So… Please forgive me!"

Arms tightly wrapped around me, so tight that it hurt. But when I looked up at Ryou, he had me in a complete embrace. His body against my own, it's so warm. It feels so nice… Having his arms around me. Even though it's very damp from the heavy mist, everything felt dry and fresh just for this moment.

"Thank you, for that apology. They aren't that easy to do and I know you are struggling with your new life style. I just want you to know that you can always count on me to be there for you, no matter what," his gentle brown eyes were sincere. He cleared the mist from my face and held my cheeks in his palms for a moment. There is a question surrounding me at this moment though. What is this feeling? When I'm around Joey and Tristian I don't feel so… Fussy. Why do I get this feeling when I'm around Ryou?


	11. White Haired Defender

It's been a day since we were split up from Yugi and the others, I was starting to think we were going in the wrong direction. No clue where the exit of that cave might be. I began to worry, what if there's no exit? Or what if they run into something that'll take away their chances of rescuing Grandpa?

"It seems the mist has cleared," Ryou said I guess trying to take my mind off of things. Was I being that obvious?

I sneezed, ah crap I hope that was an allergy sneeze. This is no time to get sick! It's not often that I get the flu but when I do get it sometimes it can get pretty bad. I just hope I have nothing to worry about.

"I think we should take a rest here," Ryou suggested. "And you don't look so well."

"What do you mean? I feel fine!" I was obviously lying, my face was burning up and my energy decreased with every step.

He took the backpack from me and sat up my tent and everything else, like my sleeping bag. While I sat on a tree stump barely able to keep myself awake. Ryou then grabbed my hand and made me lay down for a nap. I couldn't argue with him, whatever hit me really came on fast. I took off my duelling glove and placed it next to my pillow.

"You rest up Abigal, while I set up fire to cook us a meal," Ryou told me. That was all I remembered him saying as I slipped into the dream world.

I must have been really tired. I don't remember any dreams. I was in such a deep sleep that nothing could wake me. But then I heard yelling outside of the tent. I crawled far enough to open up the flap to see Ryou, who looked like he was ready to pounce someone. I realized he was yelling at a stranger with a glove in his hand. I turned my head over my shoulder to notice my dueling glove was missing.

"That's not your glove! Stealing is against the rules!" Ryou told the stranger.

"I'm breaking the rules? What about you? You're not even a participating duelist. You're not even allowed to be here on this island!" The strange backfired.

I stood up weakly and grabbed my glove from the guy's hands. I'm still feeling weak from the fever that developed, however I did my best to run towards Ryou but I tripped. The stranger turned to look at me and noticed I was barely able to stand. Crap, I'm unable to defend myself at this state. A grin stretched across his face as he reached out to take back my glove. I protected my glove as I remained on the ground.

"That's enough out of you!" Ryou was standing in front of me. "Who are you and why are you after her glove anyway?"

"My name is Porter Max. Some punk took all of my star chips, I'm not ready to give up the competition just yet," said the stranger.

"And you pick a defenceless sick girl to prey on," Ryou baa'ed.

"I had to find some way to get back into the game. And I noticed that she already has seven star chips, so I would need to win a duel or two to earn entrance into the castle," Porter Max snickered walking over to us. I was still on the ground. I can't let this creep get my glove. I need this in order to save Grandpa.

Ryou pounced on the stranger to keep him away from me but Ryou is so small I doubt he can really do any real damage to Porter Max. I stood up trying to pipe up the strength to help my friend. Ryou was thrown to the ground in front of me. I felt guilty for him having to defend me like this… He doesn't deserve to be beaten up.

"Porter Max, I challenge you to a duel," Ryou then said as he stood up. "When I win you have to promise to leave us alone!"

Wow, this feels so weird. Ryou is doing all that he can to defend me. He told me himself that he's not much of a duelist but fighting someone twice his size is not really his best way to defend me. Seeing him determined like this really warms my heart. Somehow, with him being like created an even greater spark between us… What is this feeling?

"Fine, I'll duel ya. But I'll be the victor here and I'll claim your glove and all your star chips," Porter Max chuckled.

The arena was sat up but before Ryou climbed you to the arena he had me sit on the tree stump. I'm still sick but this was no time for resting. I need to watch this duel to make sure I get the desired outcome, I can't lose my glove.

It was Porter's first move. He started off by summoning a card named Wolf in attack mode. This creature half 1200 ATK so he's off to a good start. Let's just hope Ryou can come up with a better offence.

"First, I activate the magic card: Pot of Greed, so I can draw two new cards," Ryou began. "Then I place one monster face down and end my turn."

I remember that Ryou's monsters are strange. He has monsters that thrive in darkness. Maybe his creepy deck will save us this time. Porter sent his Wolf to attack his face down monster. Turns out it was a trap. Ryou's Man-Eater Bug has an ability. When flip-summoned it destroys one monster on the field. So Porter lost his monster. But before he ended his turn Porter put a monster, plus two other cards face down. Now Ryou must go again but he gotta be careful, one of those cards could be a trap.

Ryou summoned a monster face down in defence mode. Then activated the continuous magic card Gravekeeper's Servant. This card only affects Porter, he has to send a card from the top his deck every time he declares an attack. A card like this really might come in handy. Porter Max first activated a magic called Spellbook Organization. He can look at the first three cards at the top of his deck. He pondered for a moment thinking of an order to put them because these cards aren't just for drawing anymore. If there's a specific card he wants Porter needs to put it in right order so doesn't have to send it to the graveyard to attack Ryou's monster.

"Now, I summon Tyhone in attack mode," Porter Max said. Then he sent a card from his deck to the graveyard in order to attack Ryou face down monster. The card that Ryou had face down was Morphing Jar. Both players have to empty their hands and draw 5 new cards. This move really surprised the stranger. I just hope that it did not give the guy an advantage.

The duel continued for ten minutes. Porter Max has a stronger monster on his side of the field now. It's called Sengenjin and with the attack strength of 2750 points, all Ryou can do is defend and hope for some faith in his cards. I hate the idea that Ryou might actually lose this duel, I have to keep my hope… Ryou looked at a card in his hand and smirked. He summoned a monster in attack mode then place a card face down. I hope he knows what he's doing, he just left himself open for an attack that could cost him the duel.

Porter was foolish enough fall for that trap. Ryou activated a trap card called Damage Max Omega Max. Instead of taking damage and losing the duel, he was able to increase his life points to the amount he would have lost. This is great now Ryou can have more of a chance to turn this duel around. It was Ryou's turn to draw, this turn will make all the difference. He must draw something useful to win this duel. I don't mean to sound impatient but I really need to sleep some more. When he put his fingers to the deck I felt chills go through my spine. This is it, Ryou's turn to make a difference.

"I activate the magic Change of Heart," that's Ryou's favourite card! He used it to take control of Sengenjin. But Porter Max has a monster face down in defence mode. "I activate the magic card Book of Taiyou, which allows me to flip one of your monsters into attack mode. So now I use Sengenjin to attack your Prevent Rat."

That's it! Ryou won the duel! I was so happy I could hardly contain myself. Even though I'm feeling sick it didn't keep me from being excited. at the moment I ran over to Ryou and hugged him so tight I think it took his breath away.

"How could I lose?" Porter Max was on the ground beating his fist on the soil.

Ryou and I were talking but then Max decided he was going to take my glove by force. He ran at us, full force. Both of us can't take on someone his size.

"Be gone!" Yelled an echoing voice. Within a blink Black Luster Soldier slash his sword at the bully. Porter Max was more frightened at seeing Black Luster Soldier which made him run away screaming like the wimp that he actually is.

"Thank you," I said gently. I took a step towards my guardian but before I knew it, everything went black.


	12. Yugi vs Kaiba

A church? I don't remember being in a church… Though this place do look familiar. That golden altar at the front of the building... I definitely remember being here but why am I here? Wasn't I at Duelist Kingdom island with Yugi? Where is Ryou? I walked down the aisle looking around the building. Mom used to bring me here at least once a month. But father never came to church, I guess if he was an evil being, church would have been a hard place to be. But… How come I've been brought here?

I knelt down in front of the altar and bowed my head in respect. I turned around to see someone standing in the middle of the aisle. That looks like my father. I stood up, ready to defend myself. His eyes still looked as evil as they get, it would seem that the bad memories really has written over the all the good memories I have had of him. This man haunts me in my nightmares, how can I shake him off?

"My daughter, you have grown so much," my father walked his way towards me. "You still have your father's eyes."

"You're no father of mine!" I hissed.

"Don't be so silly. No matter how much you deny it, my blood is still within you," Calcifer looked down at me. I felt myself taking a step back, he was getting a little too close but I tripped on the altar and fell back on my rear.

Just when I thought it couldn't get any worse, the place somehow caught on fire. I started running for a way to escape but the windows and doors were all locked shut. My father laughed and disappeared. It's like his spirit is still alive somewhere and he's able to find me in my dreams. I need to find a way to get out. I looked out the window to see people walking away, it's like they don't notice the church is on fire. The heat was getting so intense, it was almost like my skin was burning up.

"Abigal, you must wake up. This is a dream!" I heard a familiar voice.

"Mom?" I started to feel overwhelmed by the heat of the fire.

"You must wake up," the voice repeated.

My eyes, no matter how hard I try my hardest to get them open, I can't seem to do it. Though, I can feel a cold damp cloth on my face. My senses are coming to again but why am I unable to open my eyes? It's like they're glued together.

"That boy… He cares deeply for you," said the voice. "But be warned, there is a darkness within him that is more evil than your father."

I heard more voices coming near. They, too, are familiar to me… That's Joey's voice then I heard Yugi's voice. Bakura called out to them to come over. Footsteps drew near but I didn't have the ability to open my eyes yet. Tea knelt down next to me and I felt the cloth going over my face again, this time it was a bit more gentler, it must be Tea's doing. The cloth even went over my eyes and I took in a deep breath.

"I think she's coming to!" Ryou sounded relieved.

"Abigal, if you can hear me, please wake up. It's me... Yugi," I heard my cousin plead.

I fought harder to open my eyes. Poor Yugi doesn't need to see me like this. Suddenly, the light of the sky started to come into focus. That's it! My eyes are finally opening up for me and the first site I see are all my friends gathered around me. I reached my hand to Yugi with a smile he grabbed it.

"That fever really seemed to have took its toll on you," the white haired one looked at me with his gentle eyes.

"Ryou, thank you for taking care of me," I said trying to sit up.

Tea put her hand to my forehead to check for a fever. It seemed to have broke which is good but everyone decided to take a break before going any further. Yugi and Joey told us about the adventure they had in that cave. They came across a pair of dueling twins which deem quite a challenge but because they won their duel they gained enough star chips to earn their way into the castle. They were able to complete their quest for star chips. I feel like I've fallen behind…

"You have seven star chips?" Joey complimented. "So what happened to you guys on your adventure?"

Ryou explained that we ran into Bandit Keith and that I challenged him to a duel, only I did not actually duel him, just one of Keith's flunkies. We both figured that being exposed to the rain was part of the why I got so sick. I also was very worried about my friends so stressing about that did not help my immune system at all.

I stood up and stretched my body. A few cracks of my stiff joints relieved me of any tightness. Yugi was concerned that I might just be faking the fact that I'm better but I reassured my cousin that there was nothing to worry about. Now that Yugi and Joey has ten star chips, it was time for us to make our way to the castle. It was time Pegasus felt the wrath of the Moto family.

Before we began scaling the stairs up to the castle I began thinking about how Yugi acts when in tough situations, like there's a part of him that becomes more dominant and assertive. Not that it bothers me to see Yugi acting tough but I always remembered my cousin being shy and passive. I would always pick on him, not to be mean just to have a little fun but I would get scolded by Grandpa for bullying him. Yugi is the type to take a beating before actually working up the nerve to stand up to his foes, so Grandpa would defend him a lot. But now, it seems like Yugi has changed for the better and I bet it has something to do with that Millennium Puzzle.

My train of thought was interrupted when I noticed Yugi trip over a rock. Poor guy, even with the powers of the Millennium Puzzle he still is a little clumsy. Tea made a comment and was reminded when Yugi once saved her. Not sure how that happened but I'm sure that was when Tea joined Yugi in his group of friends. I turned my head to the others who were on their up the stairs without us. Now that I think about it, Ryou has really been there for me since day one. So Tea and I have something in common, we have someone who's always been there for us.

"We thought you guys weren't coming," Joey said as we made our way up the stairs.

Everyone seemed to be in a good mood, being positive really can come in handy right now. As we got closer to the entrance butterflies fluttered in my stomach but they quickly went away when all of us noticed someone was standing at the top, waiting for us.

"It's Kaiba," Tristan pointed out.

"Hey, Yugi… I've come for a rematch, however, I promise you that I've changed," Kaiba said. "I never understood when you mentioned the heart of the cards. But now, I have a reason to duel you."

Yugi doesn't have time for this. He has to get into the castle and win back Grandpa's soul. Plus people don't change that quickly. That duel was just a month ago there's no way someone can change that fast. But the puzzle around Yugi's neck began to glow and I felt that stronger presence again. The more confident and dominant part of my cousin, every time this happens I do not really see my cousin anymore. However, this other half of him gives Yugi the courage to win his duels, no matter the situation he's in.

The dueling site was played out. Instead of using the arenas everyone usually uses, Kaiba and Yugi were gonna duel using Kaiba's new dueling technology. I have to admit that I'm impressed how this guy can come up with such contraptions but I'll never forgive him how he treated Grandpa. Anyone who treats my family with disrespect needs to be taught a lesson in manners. I hope Yugi will put Kaiba in his place once again.

So the dueling commenced. Kaiba really does seem to be all business this time, like there's a whole other reason for dueling, other than just titles and fame. Even if he giving his all there is no way Yugi will lose. Since I didn't get enough star chips to qualify for the finals it's all up to Yugi to do what it takes to win back Grandpa's soul.

This duel is getting intense. Kaiba has infected Yugi's dueling deck with a virus, so monsters with the original attack strength of 1500 or more are automatically destroyed. This is bad considering that takes out a lot of Yugi's monsters, though he's still got a fighting chance in all of this. Watching my cousin out there give it his all really, inspires me to get better at my dueling skills. I never thought a simple card game would take such a big role in saving loved ones. But then I remembered what Pegasus said about this being an ancient game that Pharaohs from Egypt used to play in order to gain more power. And I'm beginning to believe that duel monsters are really real. The proof is in the past duels I've played, my cards would actually speak to me to guide me. Plus, there's Black Luster Soldier who magically came to me one night and nothing ever appears out of thin air.

"Let's see how you can face off against this beast," I was interrupted from my train of thought by Kaiba getting excited by the card he just drew. "You've battled against my Blue-Eyes White Dragon as individuals but let's see you defeat them when combined together!"

Kaiba played his Polymerization card and fused his three Blue-Eyes White Dragons together to form a monster with undeniable power, also known as the Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon. This beast really looks awesome. The more I look at this monster the more there seems to be utter beauty in its gruesome strength. An eye from one of heads on the ultimate dragon shifted towards me. Our eyes locked for a moment then another head roared at me.

"Well hello to you, too," I said sarcastically after raising a brow.

"Well that was strange…" Kaiba blinked then smirked. "It would seem my dragon doesn't like your cousin, Yugi."

"Abigal, are you alright?" My cousin asked me.

I just gave a nod and the duel between them continued. That moment just baffled me. That's the second time it has acknowledged my presence. It's like they know something about me that I'm unaware of about myself. Then again, I think Black Luster Soldier knows something too but just will not tell me until the time is right. But there's so many questions I need answering like, why am I the only one that's able to communicate with the monsters? I believe this ability is something completely different from the millennium items.

"I haven't been completely honest about why I challenged you to a rematch, Yugi," Kaiba's voice made me stop spacing out again. "The truth is, I'm here to save my brother Mokuba from Pegasus. If I don't win this duel then I'll lose my chances of saving my little brother's soul."

So… Kaiba really does have motivation for this duel? He basically doing the same thing for his brother as Yugi and I have been doing for our Grandfather. With two people battling when stakes are so high, how can anyone win? But Kaiba was not going to take losing to gracefully. Now with Yugi in the lead and only one attack away from winning the duel, Kaiba was going to do whatever it takes to win this match. Even if it meant putting his own life at risk.

Kaiba backed his way on a ledge, just standing about one hundred feet high off the ground. This is a risky move and a difficult choice to make. Yugi has two decisions to make, forfeit the duel and give up his only chance to rescue Grandpa or make the attack and seriously injuring or killing Kaiba. Looking at Yugi's face I could tell he was conflicted. Poor Yugi... having to battle himself in order to make the right decision, but what choice does he have? Though, Yugi was going to make the attack.

This is not good! Not matter how much of jerk Kaiba is, it's still no reason to risk his life like that. I noticed Tea calling out to Yugi to call off the attack. I noticed the look of Celtic Guardian, almost as if he knew the consequences of making this move but he had to follow orders. Luckily, Yugi ordered the attack to cease, spearing Kaiba after all. Celtic Guardian looked down, almost feeling regret for even accepting the order. He looked at me as the Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon blasted him away. I actually feel sympathetic right now…

I rushed over to Yugi, seeing that he's on his knees, crying. I knelt down in front of him, hoping he'll look up at me. But Yugi quivered as the tears dropped from his face. I've never seen my cousin so frightened before.

"Yugi, what's wrong?" Joey asked sounding worried.

"This… Spirit inside me, I almost couldn't control it," Yugi spoke. "He willing to go all the way against Kaiba."

"I'm lost. What spirit?" Tristan questions.

"Like me, Yugi has an ancient spirit inside him. It has something to do with our Millennium Items," Ryou explained.

I knew it, there is another part of Yugi. A spirit that resides in the puzzle around Yugi's neck. I'm starting to think these items are bad news, always causing trouble for those who wield them, like these items are cursed in some way. But, now that Yugi has lost the duel against and lost five star chips… Am I really going to have to duel Pegasus?


	13. The Place Where the Spirit Sleeps

Mai Valentine is a strange girl. She's a duelist that mostly thinks only for herself but her timing right now couldn't be any better. After Yugi lost the duel against Kaiba he's more than shaken up from the experience. Mai was willing to give five star chips to make up for the ones he lost. She had extra star chips so she's returning the favour from when Yugi dueled against Panic to help Mai. But something seems to be wrong…

I put my hand on Yugi's shoulder. Poor guy seemed to be lost in his own thoughts. It's really bothering me to see him like this, I wish there was something I could do. My eyes fell to Yugi's Millennium Puzzle. All his problems seem to come from this.

"Listen Yugi… I'm here for you, no matter what," I said. "Always know you're the only piece of family that I have left right now. So what I'm about to do is for your own good."

I reached my hands out to grab Yugi's Millennium Puzzle. My cousin protested against me doing this. But I forced my hands to snatch it off his neck. I looked down at it and began to feel strange. The Millennium Puzzle glowed bright and that's when everything went dark.

"Hey, wake up!" I heard a voice. This voice sounded deep and more mature.

I opened my eyes to see a familiar face.

"Y-Yugi?" I blinked.

"Not really," he said helping me up.

I looked around anything seems different. Last I remember was that I was outside of Pegasus's castle. It looks like I'm inside something else.

"How did I get here? Last thing I remember was trying to get rid of the Millennium Puzzle for Yugi, to end any more suffering for him," I thought out loud. The spirit that looks like Yugi but didn't speak to me. He remained silent. Is this guy the spirit that lives within the puzzle. Did he suck me in for trying to remove him from Yugi's life.

"I should have known you would pull a scheme like this," I growled.

"What are you talking about?" He recoiled.

"You trapped me inside here as punishment for touching the puzzle," I yelled.

"I wouldn't do such a thing!" The spirit argued. "Something else triggered the puzzle's magic."

"A likely story for someone who's trying to get out of being the bad guy," I glowered. "For all I know you're just playing innocent to earn my trust. But it's not going to work!"

I turned away and looked to go beyond the door that seem to lead out of this room. The spirit warned me not to go anywhere. Yeah, like I'm going to listen to him. He's responsible for trapping me here, so whatever he has to say is not going to change my mind. As soon as I opened the door to exit I came across a really strange labyrinth. There are stairs and doors that twist and turn all over the place. Someone can become lost in a place like this and go mad from trying.

"What kind of trick is this?" I asked out loud.

"I promise you that this is no trick," the spirit told me.

"You're just saying that to fool me!" I snipped.

He must be doing this to make a fool out of me. Trapping me in a place like this and expecting me to walk in this maze for eternity, he's sadly mistaken. Motos don't give up and this is just one more challenge for me to face. I walked towards a door and give the handle a slight jiggle. It wasn't locked, so I peaked inside. There was nothing there… Just darkness. So I tried another door and but I get the same results. Wish I had a flashlight to fall back on. My eyes shifted over my shoulder… Is he… Following me?

"Listen, I know you're just following me so you can just laugh at me when I fail," I growled.

"Why would I do that?" He asked.

The more I look at his face the more I begin to feel like he's actually being sincere. His eyes look as though he, too, is lost, like he has been in this maze for too long. But he created this maze to trick me… Right? I shook my head to force myself to clear my thoughts. This is no time to start second guessing everything now. This spirit did all of this to punish me for touching the millennium puzzle, I just know it. There's no way I'm going to let him get the best of me.

I wasn't paying attention to which door to open next. Always the same result, just darkness. Instead of closing the door maybe I should try going in. Sometimes the darkness isn't as bad as people make it be. So I took a few steps forward, almost waiting for something to happen. A figure was forming in front of me. The darkness didn't make it clear until I heard that familiar voice.

"Father… But... How did you find me?" I could sense myself starting to panic.

"I will always know how to find you, Child!" He chuckled again. "Now it's time for me to finish what I started; killing you!"

I ducked in cover, I blocked my eyes from the sight so I would not have to watch but I felt arms around me. They felt warm and safe… I looked up to see it was the spirit. Did he… Protect me?

"Are you okay?" He asked looking at me softly.

This guy… It's really starting to bug me, he went through all this trouble to trap me here and now he's protecting from my father. I don't even want to know how my father even came to this place… But what if this spirit and Calcifer are working together?

"Listen… You imposter!" I turned away from him. "Stop playing innocent with me. You're just trying to butter me up so I can trust you. So what? So that you and Father can get rid of me once and for all!"

Everyone seems to want me gone. Calcifer is always following me, toying with my emotions. I thought he was gone for good when that light made him vanish. There was no body to prove that he actually died, but as far as I'm concerned the father I knew did die that day. Suddenly, the floor started to collapse from under me. I screamed as I began to fall. With my eyes closed I dared not see what became of me. Though, it felt as if my arm was being pulled off.

"Abigal, you have open your eyes!" Said the voice of the spirit.

"There's no way I'm gonna make myself watch you kill me!" I argued.

"Trust me, Abigal! This is not my fault!"

"How can I be sure this not a trick? You were willing to do what it took to win that match against Kaiba, even if it might have killed him!"

There was silence for a moment. The grip around my wrist tightened but I felt myself shaking. Next, water fell on my cheek. Wait… Is he… Crying? I couldn't help but open my eyes to really see if my suspicion were true. I looked up at his face, he looked so sad looking at me in the eyes. Pity. That's all could give right now. Those eyes are so sincere, how can I not trust him? Even with him protecting from these traps, am I a fool now? But how can I say no that?

"I'm so sorry," he sobbed. "I know how much your grandpa means to you and Yugi. I felt like I had to do with it took to make sure Yugi got into the castle… I didn't even think of the consequences of my actions. Now I lost Yugi's trust, I can't help feel responsible for that."

"Hey..." I spoke up, still hanging over the mysterious hole in the floor. "You wanna help me up now? We should talk somewhere safe."

The spirit pulled me up and we went into the room where he usually stays. He explained to me that this labyrinth represented his mind. He has no memory of who he is or how he became trapped in the Millennium puzzle. Everything to him is a mystery. All he knows is Yugi.

"I'm sorry," I said.

"Why are you apologizing?" He looked baffled at me.

"For accusing you of being responsible for trapping me here. I'm beginning to understand you better," I confessed while hugging my knees.

Taking the time to talk to him really did help me feel better about him. This spirit has a kind and noble heart. It reminds me of stories I used to read about kings and other noblemen. The spirit of the puzzle just needs time to adjust to Yugi morals, maybe if they came to an understanding, something like this would not happen again.

"But there's still one problem," I mentioned.

"What's that?" The spirit asked.

"I need to get out of here," I laughed.

"Oh right," we both stood up from sitting on the stone floor. The spirit took hold of my hand and led me to a door. "This door should lead you back to your own mind."

I motioned to open it but then turned around to look at him. Those eyes are always so serious and he's always searching. He has a lot of questions about himself like I have about my own self. There's so much mystery surrounding us, I'm beginning to wonder if we're connected somehow.

"Hey, Spirit?" I said.

"Yes?" He replied.

"You and I have a lot in common. More than you would think," I couldn't be anymore honest. "I have many questions about why I am able to communicate with the dueling monsters. No one seems to have the answers so it's really something I have to work on."

"Now that you and I have had the chance to talk personally. I feel as though we have some sort of connection. I obviously don't know why but I feel like it has something to do with your magical abilities and my millennium puzzle," the spirited stated.

I approached the spirit and gave him a kind kiss on the cheek. With all the confusion he has to face, a little affection could probably do him some good. I turned away to open the door to return to my body but before I left there was a hand on my wrist, squeezing firmly followed with the words "Thank you".

"Abigal... Abigal!" I heard Ryou call for me.

"W-where am I?" I felt around trying to see if this was indeed reality.

I kept looking around, ignoring my friends at the moment. The walls were pale pink and old looking. Everyone was all together even Yugi was looking better. What happened while I was inside the millennium puzzle?

"You sure you're feeling alright, Abs?" Joey asked.

"Joey's right, this is second time you passed out since we got on this island," Téa said sternly.

"Guys, honestly I'm fine," I told them. "But has something happened while I was… Sleeping?" I couldn't tell them that I was inside the puzzle, nobody would believe me.

"Well… We witnessed Kaiba's defeat against Pegasus and now they're about to announce the rules for the semi finals," Ryou explained. I guess this is it… The moment of truth. I can't play any further in this tournament but I'll still have to be strong for Yugi's sake, and Grandpa's.


	14. Trust

Everyone was sat at one table. Croquet, Pegasus's right hand man and butler, was standing at the head watching us enjoy our meal. Everything tasted nice, considering we had to thrive for ourselves in the past couple of days. With all this great food it is actually a shame that I can't bring myself to enjoy it. I cannot seem to take my mind off that experience from within the millennium puzzle. The spirit was so sincere that I feel bad for ever doubting his kindness. Not to mention why might be in store for us here in the castle, Yugi just got to win this tournament.

Joey and Tristan really seemed to enjoy their food, then again these guys like food no matter where it came from. Croquet then announced that there's a special surprise in the soup. Only Joey, Mai, Yugi and Bandit Keith received a golden eyeball in their soup. This turned me away from the meal even more. In these eyeballs was a letter, these letters represent who will be dueling who. A, B, C, and D. Yugi got A, Mai got B, Joey received D and Bandit Keith was C. These matchups should be interesting, everyone has a purpose for being here. Whether it be for titles or for the sake of saving someone's life. Tomorrow will decide everyone's fate.

Before we went to our separate rooms I stopped Yugi in the hallway. He was confused as to why I wanted to talk to him. I have to admit that I'm a little conflict about what I should tell him. Would Yugi be angry with me if he learns the truth or if I tell him to trust the spirit of the millennium puzzle, would he resent the spirit even more?

"Abigal, is there something you need to say to me?" Yugi just asked.

I looked at his face and he was just being curious.

"Good luck out there tomorrow," I changed my mind.

I went to my room but soon after I heard a commotion in the hallway. There were whispers then I heard a knock on my door. Tristan, Tea and Ryou were looking for me. I motioned for them to come inside so we would not disturb anyone else. Tristan then explained to me that everyone has a theory that, somehow, Pegasus cheats at his duels. Now that he mentioned it I remember the duel Yugi had against the tape. Pegasus was somehow able to read the minds of his opponents and know how to counter any of the cards he might play.

Everyone, mostly just Tristan, had the bright idea of sneaking around to see if Pegasus has a hidden camera, to help the cheating. I don't think I should tell them the truth, especially Tristan and Téa, they would not understand how this man's millennium eye works. But maybe I could tell Ryou what I know.

"Ryou, can I talk to you… alone?" I asked.

"Sure," he replied then turned to the others. "I hope you don't mind. So wait for me if you want, this won't take long."

"That's okay Bakura," Tristan said. "We'll meet you at the dueling site."

There was silence between us for a moment, I was listening to see if there was anyone outside my door still. Then I looked at Ryou, feeling a little nervous about what I need to tell him. Ryou smiled at me waited for me to work up the nerve to say to him what's on my mind.

"You know how Tristan said that Pegasus is cheating somehow?" I began.

"Yeah, what do you suppose it might be?" Ryou just watched me carefully, curious about my theory.

"Well, you weren't there so I have to tell you. When Pegasus sent the invitation to Yugi there was a cassette tape with the package. On that video, Pegasus used the power of his millennium eye to take Yugi and me into the shadow realm, everyone else was frozen in time," I explained. "During the duel, Pegasus was using his millennium item to read Yugi's mind."

"So you're saying that Pegasus wins his duel by cheating through his millennium eye? I understand why you wanted to talk to me alone. Those who are unfamiliar with the mystical powers of these ancient items wouldn't be able to comprehend what they are actually capable of," my friend said. "I am wondering something though… How is it that you were able to see the events between Yugi and Pegasus while everyone couldn't?"

I guess it's too late to lie now. I should tell about what the spirit from the millennium puzzle thinks.

"I asked myself that question, along many others, a lot ever since I came to this island but when I touched Yugi's millennium puzzle my mind was transported inside. There, I was able to talk to the spirit as an individual, without Yugi's interference. He believes that my ability to communicate with dueling monsters is connected to the millennium items somehow," I told Ryou.

I noticed a mild twitch in his eyes when I'm told him this. Like, somehow expressing my opinion struck a nerve. I turned away from him and looked down. Ryou probably thinks I'm being ridiculous. There's no way I can have a connection to the spirit of the millennium puzzle, I'm just lowly girl with no parents.

"Abigal, please here me out," I felt Ryou standing closer from behind. "Please try not to get too involved in the matters regarding the millennium items. These things are dangerous and if you were to get in the wrong person's way… You might hurt."

I dared not to say anything. For he might be right. What kind of future does those involved have? There are many mysteries surrounding these items and when there's an answer there are many other question to follow. I felt arms around me as the moment progressed. These arms have the same emotions the spirit had when he held me. Tight but secure. Both these people who have held me their arms around my body make it feel like our bonds have increased. I trust Ryou with all my heart.

"Hey Ryou…" I spoke up. "Can I tell you something else."

"What's wrong?" I heard him ask in my ear.

"Why is it that I feel like my father is still out to get me?" I asked for his opinion. "Everywhere I go it seems like he's in my shadow."

"Well, you've have had a bad experience with him, right? I remember you saying to me that he almost killed you," Ryou replied letting go of me. "Sometimes we're haunted by the people who hurt us. Especially when it's someone we've trusted for so long."

"I saw him inside the millennium puzzle. I think it might have been an illusion because the spirit protected me but nothing actually happened."

"Well it would seem that the spirit of the millennium puzzle is actually a good person. If he's was willing stand in your way to protect you then there obviously some good inside him. Just know that I, too, will do what I can to protect you. Even if it means removing myself from your life."

"What do you mean by that?" I turned around to look at him in the eyes, surprised that would say such a thing. With him saying that to I felt like my heart break a little. I don't think I'm ready for that. Ryou didn't say anymore. He just approached me and kissed me on the forehead. This brown eyed boy I call my friend, there is an air of mystery around him I cannot seem to shake. His lips against my forehead felt real and sincere, like he truly meant what he said.

I was left alone again. Ryou removed himself from my room. I just sat on my bed, wrapping my head around the whole thing that just happened. I'm confused about why this bothers me… Who am I kidding? I do not want to lose any of my friends no what the situation is. It was like Ryou flicked a switch. An emotional roller coaster that I have to face. I did not think I could bring myself to trust anybody. Ryou had a spirit inside him like Yugi does only this one has a more evil presence about him, while Yugi's just feels lost.

I have no memory of my dreams that night. Everything was peaceful, very strange considering I usually get nightmares about my father and mother. This time, my thoughts were blank, just how I like it. Nothing to disturb me from my sleep until I heard knocking on my door.

"Abigal, it's time to get up now," Ryou told me from the other side.

I groaned but there was no denying that I absolutely must get up. Today is the day where our fates become clear. Grandpa's soul is on the line and I remember Ryou telling me that Seto Kaiba and his little brother are prisoners in this castle, too. After washing my face, I walked out in the hallway to see Yugi there, hesitating to go beyond those doors. My heart was pounding against my chest, I feel like I should tell him what happened while I was passed out. He needs to know…

"Hey, Yugi…" I began.

Yugi just turned to look at me, he seemed nervous as well.

"There's something I need to tell you," I felt nervous for bringing this up. But I think he should hear it from me.

"What is it?"

"I met the spirit of that lives in your puzzle."

Yugi seemed surprised.

"If you don't want to take his word then believe me. That spirit feels terrible about what happened in that duel between you and Kaiba. Please consider letting him duel with you again," I bowed my head, begging on the spirit's behalf.

"I have to be truthful with you, Abigal. I had a dream about Grandpa. He told me that I should put all my trust in the spirit of the millennium puzzle, also. But I'm afraid that if I let him take control again that he might try to hurt someone just to get what he wants," Yugi confided.

"I understand that you're scared but I think you're being a little hard on him. This spirit got you this far because he knows how much we care about Grandpa, so he wanted to make sure you get where you need to be. Of course this doesn't mean I agree with the measures he took to defeat Kaiba but…" I paused for a moment.

"But what?" Yugi raised a brow at me.

"But I think you should forgive him," I asserted. "He saved me twice and I have every faith that his noble heart will guarantee your victory against Pegasus!"

My cousin just looked at me, biting his lip like he wanted to say something to me. That's it, I told him everything he needed to hear from me. My opinion about the spirit probably won't do anything for Yugi but he's gotta know that the spirit isn't something to be feared. What we should be fearing is what Pegasus has in store for us.

Joey, Tea, Tristan and Ryou showed up to the door to see Yugi off for his first duel; him against Mai. My cousin summoned up his powers from the millennium puzzle and I could tell the spirit was present. Our eyes met like he wanted to say something but there was something holding him back. When he turned his back to go through the door, I thought of something.

"Um…" I voiced softly.

Yugi turned around to look at me again. I routed through my pocket to find my deck then search through it to give him my best card.

"You're giving me Black Luster Soldier?" Astounded that I was willing to let him have my favourite card.

"More like borrow. Think of it as me being inside your deck," I inspired. "Black Luster Soldier isn't just my best card but also my guardian. So with him in your deck he won't just be protecting you, he'll also be protecting everyone that is dear to me."

I promise, I won't fail, I heard my card say from Yugi's hand.

And I have no doubt that you can't pull through. I will never doubt your loyalty, I said turning away from my cousin.

I felt a hand on my wrist again. It felt the same as when I left the spirit from within the millennium puzzle. There was a firm squeeze and I could tell it was the spirit doing this. I just smiled and kept walking away from them. Yugi, you better win this duel, if not, I'll never forgive you.


	15. Mental Preparation

So the match between Mai Valentine and my cousin Yugi, has finally begun. With everything at stake he must win this duel. His first move was a shaky one, Mai was able to outsmart him and wipe his defenses. This is bothersome, I can tell Yugi was still fighting with himself to hold back the spirit, fearing that he might try to hurt someone again. I could also sense that the spirit was getting frustrated with Yugi holding him back. Mai has been making comments, which would intimidate someone and really mess with their head. But Mai is actually telling Yugi exactly what he needs to hear. Though, he still seems to be fighting with himself and because of this the duel is really not looking good. Mai has not lost one life point while Yugi is dangerously low. This irritating me to no end!

"Yugi! You gotta snap out of it!" I growled. "If you lose this duel, not only will you lose your chance to save Grandpa, you'll also have me on your back for the rest of your life!"

"Wait, what are you saying?" Yugi was shocked by my comment.

"I joined this tournament to search for a new meaning to my life. I did what I could to get this far, not just for my sake but for Grandpa's sake, too! But I didn't get enough star chips to participate! You and Grandpa are the only family I have left! If you lose this duel I'll never forgive you!" I yelled with my fist hitting the railing on the balcony.

I let out growls of frustration from watching Yugi make a fool out of himself. He's always so confident and reserved which is what helps him win all the challenges that he faced so far. We, as family, are close to each other, if anything I see Yugi more like the brother I never had, rather than my direct cousin. If he keeps fighting with the spirit inside him, Pegasus will come after all of us.

"Abigal, don't be so hard on Yugi, he's doing everything he can!" Joey growled at me.

"Easy Joey, she's allowed to express how she feels," Ryou defended me.

"Yeah if she's allowed to express her feelings then I have the right to express myself as well," the blonde one glared at me, folding his arm, disapproving my outburst.

I should not have expressed my opinion then... If anything, I'm only making it worse on Yugi. But we're all scared of Pegasus and Yugi has to know that he's not in this alone. The only problem is that if Yugi were to lose, I would have to do something to get at Pegasus myself but I don't have a millennium item to counter his.

"Abigal, look at me," I lifted my head to look at him.

Those eyes, they're not Yugi's, it's the spirit of the millennium puzzle. Looking at me. It's like time and space has stopped for this moment when our eyes connected, not just our eyes but our hearts connected as well. I could sense a whole new kind of determination. My mind relaxed knowing that I can put my faith back into Yugi and into the spirit of the Millennium puzzle.

The duel continued and Yugi was making a comeback. Though, when Mai summoned Harpie's pet Dragon to the field it seemed like she had the advantage again. That dragon is really strong and I know that the card I gave Yugi will be the one to win him this duel. My cousin played the magic card: Swords of Revealing Light. This gives him three whole turns to come up with a way to destroy that dragon. It would seem that Yugi is searching for a card that could turn this whole duel around and I can sense that the spirit is feeling insecure about gambling on his chances on this one card.

Black Luster Soldier, if you can hear me, please heed my call. Please help my family win this duel. He's searching for your summoning card to win this duel. Yugi doesn't just need you, I need you, too, I communicated.

There was a pause in Yugi's draw phase. Like, he was hesitant on drawing this card, fearing that he might fail, putting everyone else in jeopardy. This one draw could decide the fate of the lives of so many.

"Yugi! We believe in you!" Tea called out.

"That's right man, we're with you all the way!" Tristan added.

"Remember what you're fighting for and no matter what, we'll always be by your side," Joey added as well.

I didn't bother say anything just gave Yugi an encouraging smile. It seems like my cousin worked up the nerve to draw the card then slapped it down on the playing field. That's it! That is the card with all our hopes and dreams.

"Now I play: Black Luster Ritual!" Yugi called. "By sacrificing my two monsters, Kuriboh and Gaia the Fierce Knight, I can summon up the legendary warrior; Black Luster Soldier!"

I beamed with excitement seeing my cousin playing my favourite card. Yugi actually pulled it off, putting his faith in the card I gave him really did come in handy. My grip around the railing of this balcony tightened as the anticipation of what is going to happen next.

Abigal, I heeded your call! For in this battle I will bring victory to the one you trusted me to! Because you put your faith in my abilities I will always be there for you and everyone YOU care for!

With that said Black Luster Soldier charged at Harpie's pet dragon. He destroyed Mai strongest monster. I knew it, my card is the best one ever. Now that's he on the field it feels like a part of me is in this duel as well and I'll do everything I can to protect Yugi! It felt as though someone was staring at me, and I was right. Pegasus glared at me with everything he had. By the looks of it, he read my mind and was troubled by what he may have heard or saw. That's right Pegasus, I'm a strange girl and I may not know what exactly my role is but know that I don't plan on allowing you to get to Yugi so easily.

Mai surrendered to Yugi. She had no monsters that could beat my Black Luster Soldier, so she forfeited the match. Facing defeat is always a struggle for some people. Mai frowned and left the arena. Yugi thanked her for helping him learn from his defeat from Kaiba. Yugi ran up to the balcony where all of us were standing. We all greeted with a rewarding smile. My cousin looked to my direction and gave me a hug. I smiled and knelt down to give him a more tight hug, since he's shorter than I am. I didn't inherit the Moto's shortness… Now it's Joey's turn to face Bandit Keith. Joey went down to the arena only to find out that his duel qualification card is missing. Joey left to search for it. I took the time to talk to Ryou for a moment.

"With all the commotion from the duel, we didn't really have a chance to talk," I said feeling a little shy considering the kiss he laid on my forehead last night.

"Right! How are you feeling this morning?" Ryou always seem so happy to talk to me.

"I'm alright, just nervous. For Yugi's sake…" I admitted.

There was a pause for a moment. My eyes shifted to Yugi, who was talking to Tristan and Tea then I came back to Ryou, who was gently looking into my eyes. There was continued silence between us. I wanted to say so much but I can't bring myself to say anything.

"Well, Joey is back so we should pay attention to give him our support," Ryou smiled then turned away from me.

"Ryou, would you…" I paused.

"Yes?" He turned his head to look over his left shoulder.

"After we're finished here… Would you like to do on a date… With… Me?" I must be blushing from each ear but then Tristan interrupted.

"I hardly think this is the time to be asking anyone out on a date, Abs. We need to focus on what's really important, like supporting Joey," Tristan asserted.

Tristan was right. What was I thinking? Ryou did not give an answer so I probably just screwed everything up. With everything we been through I thought he might return the feelings I have for him. For all I know he probably just thought of me as a friend. But… What if asking him on a date chased him away? Besides, I'm here to help save Grandpa not pick up a stud.

The duel between Joey and Bandit Keith ended with Joey as the victor. He won by using his Red-Eyes Metal Dragon. Basically, a red-eyes black dragon infused with powers of metalmorph. Whenever I see that card in action I feel a strong urge to have that card in my deck. Like, it belongs with me. But there's no way I could take such a card from Joey.

Turns out that Keith was cheating this whole time. Stealing the qualification from Joey and then pulling cards from his arm bands to power up his slot machine card. Pegasus ordered his men to banish Bandit Keith from Duelist Kingdom but Keith was not going to have it. Somehow, Keith had a gun to hold up to Pegasus's face. If that were someone else they would be quivering in their boots but this man had a button to press, sending Keith plunging to his doom.

Now it was Joey and Yugi's turn to duel… This is going to be a tough duel. Both sides are fighting for someone else. Joey for his sister and Yugi for our Grandpa plus the souls of the Kaiba brothers. These two guys are so close that regardless of the outcome of this duel, they promise to remain friends. How noble, friend until the end, even though they're rivals at this moment.

I turned my attention to Pegasus who was looking at me again. My legs were feeling weak for a second. I had to keep my grip on the rails. As the duel between my friends continues I felt my stomach tighten and my nerves going to haywire. I looked over at Pegasus, once more, who seemed to enjoy seeing me struggle with my anxiety. Is he doing this with his millennium eye? I had to leave the area before someone sees me explode.

What am I getting so anxious about? I have not felt like this since my birthday, the day my father tried to kill me. I fell to my knees, not able to keep walking. It's like looking into that man's eyes brought my worst fears into my mind. I fear that Yugi might lose and what will become of Yugi if he does? Will Pegasus reap the soul from his body? What about Grandpa? He's gonna be trapped in hell for all eternity along with the Kaiba brothers. Then what will happen to me? I will be alone and with being so inexperienced at playing dueling monsters I would not be able to stand against the man.

"Abigal?" I heard a soft voice from behind.

I looked over my shoulder, seeing Ryou standing in the light from the dueling area. I looked away from him, fearing that he caught me having one of my mental breakdowns. Pegasus really has me on my ropes, if I can't regain my composer there's no way I can help Yugi in his duel again that evil man.

"Is there something wrong?" He sounded like he already knew the answer. I didn't say anything just kept myself from looking at him. But I felt hands on my cheeks which guided me up to meet his eyes in the dark. "How many time do I have to tell you? If there's something wrong, you know you can always talk to me about it."

Ryou has told me this a nice few times but I do not like him seeing me so weak. Plus, I thought after that request, about us going on a date, he might want to break off our friendship. With my face in his hands I could not help but look at him in the eyes. I could tell he was getting irritated with me… But why?

"Why do you look at me like that? Do you not like me anymore?" I asked with so much doubt in my face, surely anyone could tell what's going on in my head.

"No Abigal, in a matter of fact, it's quite the opposite," Ryou told me. "Every time something bothers you, you always trying to handle it by yourself. It just bothers me that you don't trust me enough to express what's really on your mind. No matter what the issue is, you have to know that I am truly your friend."

"How can you like for me so much?" I asked with my head still being held by him.

"What's not to like? You're a pretty girl with a heart of gold. Everything you've done up until now has been to help your Grandpa. I admire that you're willing to put yourself in harms way to protect those you care about," Ryou expressed. "Plus, there's an air of mystery around you. Not to mention I always feel ten times lighter when you're with me."

We were interrupted by Tea and Tristan's cheering for the two friends dueling against each other. Ryou stood up with his hand held to help me onto my feet. I accepted his help and I do not know if he even noticed that our hands were still together as we walked back into the dueling area. Tea looked at us first with expression of concern on her face but then smiled seeing how much better I'm feeling. Tristan just seem to roll his eyes at us and turned his attention back to Joey and Yugi's duel. I came back just in time to see Yugi re-summon Red-Eyes Black Skull back to his side of the playing field and wipe out the rest of Joey's life points.

We all went down to greet both Yugi and Joey. They both put up a good fight but there could only be one winner. A part of me feels bad for Joey but the other part of me is glad that it was Yugi that won. I don't think Joey could really fight against Pegasus, he doesn't have a millennium item to help him. Even though Yugi won, my cousin gave the three million dollar prize money to Joey so he could pay for his sister's operation. That's another admirable quality about Yugi, money is one of things that doesn't matter to him. If someone else needs it, he'll give it away.

"Yugi, now it's time to face the music," I said to him.

"I know. I would be lying if I said I wasn't nervous," he looked down.

"Whatever happens, always know that all of us are behind you," Tea reassured.

And I may not know what my powers can do but I hope you know that I'll do what it takes to protect you and the spirit of the millennium puzzle during this next duel. Even after that meltdown I just had I could not help feel the fire fueling once again.


	16. So Much Happening

Now was the battle of the century: Pegasus vs Yugi. My theory about Pegasus cheating through his millennium eye was correct. With his power, this man can read every thought that comes to Yugi's mind. So, he's able to know which cards this kid is going to play and come up with a defensive strategy. I wish there was some way for me to help.

"Yugi, once I'm done with you, I'll be going after your dear little cousin," Pegasus chuckled.

"Leave her out of this Pegasus. Your battle is with me, so Abigal has nothing to do with this," my cousin barked.

"That's where you're wrong, Yugi boy," this man said with a slight. "Your cousin has powers of her own. Though she does not need the millennium items to control it."

"So you plan on draining her powers?"

"Not exactly. But with her as my obedient, soulless, mind slave I can use her powers as I please."

Now there's even more riding on this duel. If Yugi loses he's coming after me next. Just to get his hands on what powers I possess. The problem is that I don't know what kind of power I have. There is the hint that it has to do with duel monsters, other than that anyone's guess is as good as mine. The duel continued but this time Yugi has come up with a way to outsmart Pegasus. He has separated his mind from the spirit from within the millennium puzzle. I was so caught up in the excitement from this duel that I didn't see Ryou leave the area.

"Where did Ryou go?" I asked curiously.

Joey said he went to look for Tristan. Tristan left a while ago, no idea why either. We all thought he had to use the bathroom or something. I trust Ryou will bring him back safely. As the duel progressed Yugi figured out a way to destroy the unstoppable Toon World from using the mind shuffle. This devastated the evil creator of duel monsters, for these were Pegasus's favourite cards. We were all happy for Yugi until Pegasus's fury took over. Now it's a battle of will from within the shadow realm. Purple clouds surrounding the area around Yugi and Pegasus, no interference from anyone else.

This is bad… I had to get in there somehow. It's not just Yugi that needs my help but I have strong sense of duty, to protect the spirit as well. They all need my help. Being outside is no way for me to assist them. I have to get to them... I backed up as far as I could go from the railing, noticing Joey and Tea looking at me.

"What are you doing, Abs?" Joey blinked.

"I must be protect him!" I heard myself say. At this moment I don't think can control my actions. It's like my body is acting on instinct.

"Protect who? You mean Yugi?" Téa questioned.

Without another word I felt myself run to the railing of the balcony and leaping above the big cloud of shadows. I heard my friends call out to me before everything went dark. Then I heard a voice calling to me, it was the spirit again. He was looking at me, seeming worried. I jolted myself up to look where I am. I must have fell through the dome. My eyes shifted to Pegasus who seemed startled by my presence.

"Your powers are strong. Stronger than I anticipated. To be able penetrate the walls of the shadow realm… I'll surely make use of them," Pegasus gave his evil chuckle.

Somehow this silver haired man was able to read the spirit's mind again but how? The shadow realm was taking its tole on Yugi but the boy's spirit is still here. That's when I thought Pegasus might be using my mind to know what's in Yugi's hand.

"Bingo," the man said.

I growled.

"What?" The spirit shifted his eyes at me.

"Yugi… Spirit, I'm sorry… Pegasus is using me to see your cards," I put my head down then reached into my pocket and got out a bandana.

"Abigal, what are you doing?" The spirit sounded troubled.

"I'm here to protect Yugi and the spirit of the millennium puzzle. If Pegasus is using my eyes to get to you then I must blind myself," I said tightening the bandana around my face. Everything is dark now. With the words coming from my mouth, I do not feel like myself at the moment.

I stood still, kind of afraid to make a step. All I could do now is trust my hearing and hope the spirit is making some progress. Then, I heard Yugi's voice I could sense he was getting weaker by the second. Dueling in the shadow realm differs from dueling in the real world, the monsters are real here.

Wait that's it! I don't need to see in order to know what's going on! I began to talk to all the monsters in Yugi's deck. Monsters hear me, I call to you from my heart. Please help Yugi and the spirit of the millennium puzzle to defeat this man. He's caused too much suffering for those dear to all of us. Our grandfather, our friends and innocent civilians.

I heard muttering and then I heard a voice. It was deep and noble, very similar to Black Luster Soldier but I could tell it wasn't him.

You have my word. That's all that was said. I do not know who's voice that was but I have a feeling Pegasus will meet his doom from whoever it was.

"Little girl, what the heck are you scheming?" Pegasus growled at me.

"I'm using my powers to help my family, Pegasus. I may not know what more my powers can do but I know this; I'll use them to protect those I care about," I told Pegasus.

Yugi came back to try to place one more card face down then played Feral Imp in defence mode. Pegasus took the opportunity to drain the rest of Yugi's energy by attacking his monster. I heard a collapse which automatically made me rip off my bandana. His spirit is drained… How could… I growled at Pegasus with fury boiling my blood.

"Oh what a shame isn't it? To have your last piece of family taken from you," he taunted. "How tragic that you couldn't keep your vow to protect little Yugi. But don't fret, I plan on making way with your spirit as well."

"Abigal, I'm sorry," the spirit said to me. "You must be disappointed in me."

"No… I'm angry but not at you," I said standing beside him, able to see clearly now.

I turned around, blocking Pegasus from looking into my mind to read what the spirit has in his hand. The match continued and the spirit said that the strong bond from our friends is what's protecting us. I turned back around to face Pegasus and he was right I could feel their presence giving me the strength to protect my cousin from him. That's when the spirit activated the magic card: Black Magic Ritual. By sacrificing his dark magician and a monster stolen from Pegasus he was able to summon Magician of Black Chaos.

A-are you the one who answered me? I asked, looking him in awe.

I am, said the magician giving me a small smirk.

Pegasus infused two monsters to create another called Thousand Eyes Restrict. Which paralyzes all the monsters the spirit has on the field. But it would seem he was ready to make a comeback. He used Kuriboh as a decoy and enhanced the fluff ball's abilities with multiply. So when Pegasus's monster sucked up the Kuriboh, they exploded on contact, blinding the creature, giving the spirit the edge to take down Pegasus once again for all. The Chaos Mage took down the creator of duel monsters and won the duel.

Thank you, Magician of Black Chaos. I don't think we could have done this without you, I said full heartedly.

Anything for you, Princess, he bowed to me before leaving the field to rest.

"Wait, what do you mean?" Did he just seriously call me… Princess?

The shadowy fog lifted, revealing Tea, Joey and Tristan, standing there, waiting for us. We all smiled at each other until I got a slap in the face from Tea. That really caught me by surprise. My eyes shifted to Tea not exactly sure on how to react to what she just did. This is the first time anyone felt the need to slap me across the face, other than Bandit Keith.

"That's for what you did back there. Don't ever scare us like that again!" Tea scolded.

I continued rubbing my stinging my cheek, not taking my eyes off this girl. She was really furious about me. Joey and Tristan both also gave me the eye of disapproval. Maybe I was being a little reckless. I guess anyone else would have met their fate with the stunt I pulled.

"I'm sorry… I wasn't thinking," I looked down.

"Exactly, you could have been hurt or worse!" Joey scolded me.

I felt a hand on mine, I looked to see who it was. It was Yugi, he's back to normal. My cousin is better all because he won the duel against Pegasus. Everyone was happy to see Yugi and they all forgot about what just happened a few seconds ago. I just stood back taking in this moment. I'm so grateful to the spirit of the millennium puzzle for being so valiant to the very end. Then we heard a voice coming from the balcony. It was Ryou, waving at us! I was even more happy to see him again. Tristan explained to him that his millennium item was making him act weird again so he gave it a toss. Ryou promised to take care of Mokuba while we go look for Pegasus, who magically disappeared.

We ran around the castle until Tea and Tristan began to remember the tower to our far left. Apparently, they were here with Ryou before but they had no memory of it until now. I don't understand what was being said but we kept running. Then we heard a pitiful scream of agony. All of us ran faster to find Pegasus and his men coming down the stairs. Apparently, Pegasus took sick and needed to be taken away. Yugi and I demanded to know what happened to the souls of those we demanded to be set free. But Croquet did not give us a straight answer. We all headed up to the tower anyways to see if he really did keep his word.

My attention turned towards the giant painting on the wall. This woman, she's so beautiful and gentle looking. From the looks of it, she was very important to Pegasus. Tea then took up a book and read a few pages of it. Apparently, this woman was Pegasus's lover. However, a sickness came and took her life. Though, he never mentioned what exactly the sickness was. It could have been anything. However, on his journey to finding a way to bring his wife back to life, he discovered duel monsters. Then he was gonna use Kaiba Corp's technology and the power of his millennium item to bring his dear Cecilia back to life.

After all we have been through, and everything this man has done… Why do I feel sad? I asked myself.

Because you know how it feels, I heard a voice. I looked around and I noticed it was Black Luster Soldier and Magician of Black Chaos was standing before me. My card spoke once again. You know it feels to have loved ones taken from you. So, it's only natural for you to have a little empathy.

I guess Black Luster Soldier was right, losing my parents did leave a crack in my soul after all. These monsters, standing together in front of me makes me feel like I have something more to offer. They give me the feeling of hope… I was then distracted when everyone decided it was time to head back home, to see if everyone is alright. Yugi and I stayed back for a minute to really take in this moment.

"You really did it, Yugi," I smiled softly.

"We did it. I don't know what you did back there but I'm glad I have a cousin like you by my side," Yugi said to me. "The spirit is also grateful to you as well."

"I'm glad."

"What did you do anyways?"

"Well, I know I have the ability to communicate with duel monsters. So I called out to the cards in your deck to have the courage to help us fight."

"And that allowed me to summon the magician of black chaos."

I cannot tell him what the magician said to me. I don't know what the chaos mage really meant by calling me princess but I know that it created more questions. So, we began to walk our way down the stairs, going to try to catch up with the others but we stopped by a tanned skin man wearing a turban and robes. His eyes were strange to me, like there was no feeling to his soul, all business. He approached Yugi without saying a word.

"Abigal, look he has a millennium item, too," Yugi pointed out.

"I since a disturbance among the millennium items. A thief has stolen the millennium eye," the mysterious man said without even saying hello to us.

"You think that Yugi has something to do with this? We were just checking to see if Pegasus- Hey! Are you listening to me!?" I demanded. Before I knew it, Yugi and this man were frozen with a strange key directed at my cousin's forehead.

They have been like this for a few minutes. I was getting a little impatient about this whole situation. I hope he's not accusing my cousin of any kind of criminal act, Yugi is innocent! With each passing minute I began even to get more worried until the man released Yugi from his power.

"Well, it's about time you came back into reality!" I barked. "How dare you point such a thing at Yugi!"

His eyes shifted towards me then held the key up to my own forehead. My body froze but my mind was still active. What is he doing? All I remember was opening my in dark chamber. The only light source was from us. We illuminated the room bright enough to see, so our very beings were the light in the darkness.

"My millennium key allows me to see into everyone's mind," he explained.

We were standing in what looked like an ancient tomb, made of stone. Both of us stood in front of a stone tapestry that two symbols. To our right was the Egyptian symbol for light and on the left was the Egyptian symbol for dark. In the middle of this wall was a giant metal door. Gold on left and black on the right.

"I've heard stories about a sorceress who used the powers of light and darkness to protect an ancient pharaoh," the mysterious man said.

"Powers of light and darkness?" I wondered.

"I could never believe that such a story was true. Only people with millennium items could access such abilities," he said approaching the door. But this man was then shot back by a powerful force field. Something then formed in front of us. It was Black Luster Soldier. He looked as if ready to strike the man. This mysterious man is only here to find out whether or not I am the thief he was looking for. Black Luster Soldier jumped into the air to strike at the man again.

"Stop!" I yelled. A barrier formed around me repelling the blow from my favourite monster. "I'm sorry Black Luster Soldier but this man is not a threat."

He didn't say anything only knelt to the ground with his head down. I turned around to look at the innocent man, who was in great shock from my action.

"You protected me with your own body. Using yourself as a shield against your most trusted creature," he said. "I am deeply sorry for my rudeness. I would have never guess that you are the one chosen to wield the powers of light and darkness."

What is he talking about? All I did was stand in his way against my monster. There's obviously something worth protecting beyond these doors. I have never seen them until now. I approached the door but it would not open at all.

"I guess even you are not ready to open these doors just yet," the man said.

That's when I felt my real body move again. He took his key down from my face and bowed to the both us. I blinked realizing I was back into reality. All these events just happened inside my head? How strange...

"I am greatly moved by the both of you. Yugi, being the chosen one to defend the world against the rising evil and Abigal, the chosen one to protect Yugi and the spirit on their quest," the man said to us then began to disappear.

"Wait, what is your name?" Yugi requested.

"I am Shadi. We will meet again one day," the mysterious man said as his voice faded into the dark.


	17. Date Night

Everything Yugi and I have fought for has finally come to a close. The Kaiba brothers were back to normal and I got admit that seeing them really warms my heart. Until Seto opened his mouth at us again. But that's no big deal. I'm more excited to see Grandpa again. So, we ended up hitching a ride in Kaiba's helicopter. I had to admit that air travel is not my favourite forms of transportation. My stomach was feeling a bit odd but that could be a mixture of excited nerves as well. When we walked through the doors of the hospital there he was smiling at us. I couldn't help but feel my emotions coming out of me like a fountain. Yugi and I both ran to him. I was on my knees hugging him while Yugi hugged him normally.

Finally, we're a family again!

We were on our way home when we were stopped by a blonde little girl. Dressed in pink and holding a teddy bear. She looks innocent enough… Until she opened her mouth.

"Are you Solomon Moto?" She asked.

Grandpa nodded.

"My name is Rebecca and I'm here to take back the Blue-Eyes White Dragon you stole from me," this little brat ordered.

"Are you sure you got the right man? Grandpa wouldn't steal from anyone," Yugi defeated gently.

"The Blue-Eyes White Dragon card is a rare card that only belong in the deck of champions. Seto Kaiba has three and your grandpa stole mine," Rebecca said.

Yugi then said that he remembered a girl who was causing a sensation in America. She's only eight years old and she's a nationwide champion. I have to admit that I'm impressed but this girl is getting on my nerves talking to her teddy bear. Then again, I'm not really a fan of snot nose kids.

"So, Solomon I challenge you to a duel!" The girl demanded.

"No way! Grandpa just got out of the hospital. I'll take you on!" I stepped in.

"I think I should duel her, Abigal," Yugi told me. "Don't get me wrong, I love watching you duel but I'm more experienced."

I guess Yugi was right. It was settled, there shall be a duel against Yugi and Rebecca. Before we continued I really wanted to go inside the house. I missed my bed and having my own bathroom. Yugi seemed really happy about this, too. I was staring at my bed when I heard a knock on the door.

"I almost forgot to return this to you," Yugi handed me Black Luster Soldier.

"Thank you, Yugi," I said without changing expressions.

"Is there something wrong?" He asked.

"Oh nothing…" That's when I heard the phone ring and Grandpa called my name. I ran out to answer to see who was on the other end of the receiver. "Hello?"

"Abigal! It so good to know you're safe. I called three times but got no answer," this was Ryou talking to me. I could tell that my face was beaming. Rebecca was in the house waiting for everyone to prepare for the match, so she just stared at me while I spoke to him. "Remember when you asked me if I wanted to go on a date with you? Well, I realized I didn't give you an answer. I'm very sorry for that and I wanted to say that I would love to go out with you! If you're not busy we should meet up at six-thirty tonight, at the mall."

"Okay!" I chimed then hung up the phone.

I never felt so happy in my life! Grandpa looked at me with quite a surprised look on his face. I guess this is a bit out of character for me. But this is my first, ever, date. Without further conversation I bolted for my shower to wash up. Then picked an outfit to wear. I shuffed on a pair of skinny blue jeans with a purple plaid tank top. Socks, sneakers then a leather jacket.

Soon we took off for Kaiba Land, for the duel against Yugi and Rebecca. For this duel Yugi was not going use the powers of his millennium puzzle. Which is fair, this girl is only young and by the way she acts with that teddy bear, it's hard to take her seriously. So, as the duel progressed the more we realize who she actually is. This girl is Arthur Hawkins's granddaughter. But no matter how much Grandpa tried to explain the facts she kept interrupting him, which really irritated me.

"If you keep disrespecting my grandfather like that I'm gonna beat those baby teeth right out of your noggin'," I growled.

"Oh I'm so scared!" She taunted.

I gave her my famous glare that works on just about everyone who receives it. That actually did work, it made her focus on the duel again. Yugi was actually turning things around but then Rebecca summoned a monster called Shadow Ghoul, which has the special ability to gain one hundred attack points for every monster in the graveyard. She then played a magic card to discard her hand, giving her monster 1100 attack point boost for a grand total of 2700 points. But the way she just tossed her monsters aside like they meant nothing, kind of bothered all of us.

Grandpa then explained that there is a theory about what duel monsters are and that they might actually be living creatures. Egyptian kings used these monsters for power and erupted into a war that could destroy the world. Pegasus mentioned the same thing. Yugi tried to tell Rebecca that there's more to duel monsters than just brains. You truly need your heart into it, otherwise dueling is just pointless. Rebecca still accused Grandpa of stealing the dragon card her Grandfather gave him.

On the third turn when Swords of Revealing Light Yugi actually surrendered. This came as a shock to everyone except Grandpa. Rebecca squealed with delight and demanded the Blue-Eyes White Dragon. When Grandpa showed it to her, she blamed him ruining it on purpose.

"That's it!" I scolded. "Stop disrespecting my family!"

Tristan and Joey had to hold me back from trying to hit her. I squirmed in their arms until a tall, lanky, elderly man walked into the arena. He gently scolded Rebecca and asked forgiveness for her rudeness. This man is Arthur Hawkins, an Archaeologist just like our grandfather was and Grandpa's best friend. He then explained to Rebecca that Yugi actually won the duel. The next card he would have drawn would have been Soul Release, removing all monster cards from Rebecca's graveyard and reducing Shadow Ghoul's attack, allowing Dark Magician to strike and win the duel. This duel was actually a play by play of the duel Grandpa had against Arthur, only Grandpa forfeited the duel to save the man's life. This little brat had to learn that dueling is not just about skill it's also about heart. That's something I have learned for myself, if it were me out there instead of Yugi, I would have went all the way.

"By the way Abigal, isn't there a date you should be going to?" Yugi reminded me.

"Crap! I almost forgot!" I gave Grandpa a kiss on the cheek then took off.

Luckily, the mall is not far away. If I run fast enough I might be able to get there in time. There's no mistaking that I need to get into better shape. Running is not something I do everyday. My lungs began to feel like pins and needles until I reached the mall entrance. I didn't see Ryou anywhere. I guess I'm a little early, so I sat and waited, giving me time to really catch my breath. I looked at the time on the giant clock tower. Ryou is really cutting it close… Maybe he's busy? I began to worry as I sat on the edge of the sidewalk with my head resting between my knees and my arms tucked under my legs.

"Abigal?" I heard his voice! I turned my head looking at his direction. "Sorry for making you wait."

"That's okay. I wasn't here that long," the truth is I would have waited for him all night.

Ryou took hold of my hand and we walked around the mall. He suggested I buy whatever I please. There were so many stores it was hard to pick what I want. I was so distracted from the shopping I did not see where my date went. He would have said something if he needed to go somewhere. So, I sat at a bench to wait for him, no clue where he might have gone.

"Guess who?" A voice surprised me with my eyes covered.

"Ryou! You scared me," I chuckled.

He bought us some snacks and all I really bought were socks and earrings. Then, Ryou came up with the idea of going to the arcade. I had to be truthful with him, I never been to an arcade before. He told there's nothing to be shy about. Arcades are just for fun anyways. In this place there was a miniature dueling arena. The cards would be played but the duel monsters were tiny. Totally different from Duelist Kingdom.

We came across a game of duel monsters hosted by a weird looking guy. People were amazed that he was able to win so many duel in one night. Ryou and I just watched his next duel. There was a kid who seemed like he was just starting out and this the weirdo was bullying for having such a weak deck. I'm sure it's the Moto instinct in me but I left Ryou's side and stood beside the kid. He had some pretty good cards in his hand.

"Before you make your next move may I give you some advice?" I asked the little one. I think he was about twelve years old.

"Back off girly. This duel is between me and him!" The creep snarled. "It doesn't matter what kind of cards he has in his hand. No one can beat me."

The duel continued and the poor kid lost. This creep's name is Marco, he's actually a high ranking duelist. Though, with the way he treats his opponents, Marco does not deserve any titles. Picking on those weaker than him. Then I thought, maybe I could give this guy a little taste of his own medicine.

"So, who wants to duel me next?" Marco taunted.

Most of the people here are young teenagers. Marco looks about seventeen. So, Ryou and I were the only ones old enough to have the experience.

"I'll duel you," I glared at him with my arms folded.

"Ha ha, yeah right! There's no way a girl like you can beat my superior dueling skills."

"Oh yeah? If you're such a good duelist, then how come I never heard of you or seen you at Duelist Kingdom?"

That seemed to have struck a nerve.

"There's no way that a chump like you could have been to Duelist Kingdom. You're bluffing," Marco growled.

"She's not. In fact I was there. Witnessing the defeating of Pegasus from Yugi Moto!" Ryou added.

I got out my dueling deck and shuffled them for about a minute. Kids started to gather around us, excited to see a real duel happen. I may not be the best duelist but I'm sure this guy cannot win this duel. I have to defend my honor. We drew the cards for our first round. It was Marco's first go. He summoned Witch of the Black Forest in attack mode. Seems like everyone has that card in their deck. He then placed a card face down. That could be a trap or spell, there was no way for me to tell. I drew my first card for the game and noticed a dragon in my hand that could give me an advantage.

"First I summon Mirage Dragon, in attack mode. Then I activate the field magic card: Mountain, to enhance my dragon's power," I played. "Now, I attack your Witch of the Black Forest!"

"Not so fast, I activate my trap card: Negate Attack!" Marco attempted.

I gave a smirk.

"What's so funny?" He snarled.

"You really are a novice," I chuckled. "Mirage Dragon's special ability! It's negates all trap cards during the battle phase! So your witch is no more."

With his witch destroy that brought his life point down about 700. So I'm at 2000 while he's lowered to 1300 points. I heard Ryou praise me for that cool move. Some of the kids around us were having a blast watching me duel circles around this creep. I could not help but smile at the encouragement I was getting. I placed a card face down then ended my turn. Witch of the Black Forest has the ability to allow Marco look through his deck for a monster with 1500 ATK or less. He played Charcoal Inpachi in defense mode then placed another card face down.

"My turn again," I was ready for anything. When I looked at the card I drew a smile stretch across my face. "Now I summon Lord of Dragons in defense mode!"

The duel continued with sparks flying between us, and not in a good way. He was starting to take the lead with a card I've never seen before it's named: Spiral Serpent. With 2900 attack points all I can do right now is defend. Ryou kept cheering me on while some of the other kids were starting to doubt my victory. If there's one thing I learned from Yugi is that if I believe in myself and in my deck, there's nothing I can not do! I have to win this duel, to become stronger and more experienced.

This last card should determine whether I win or lose. I put my fingers to my cards and drew.

"You put up a good fight but I'm far from beaten!" I looked at him with fire in my eyes.

"What are you talking about? There's nothing in your deck that can save you from my next attack!" Marco barked.

"There are plenty of cards in my deck that can defeat you. But I'm not going to use my prized card on a worthless scum like you. So instead I activate the magic card Polymerization! For this monster I have to fuse two normal dragons in order to summon: The First of the Dragons!" My dragon roared throughout the miniature playing field. "And because it's a dragon-type it automatically gains 200 extra points from my Mountains card but don't think I'm done yet!"

I threw down a magic card called Dragon's Treasure, giving my dragon another 500 attack points. I ordered an attack on his monster but then Marco activated a trap that would have destroyed my dragon but I had my own trap card to play. It's called Dragon's Bead. By discarding one card from my hand I can negate the effects of his trap card and destroy it. Allowing my monster a full out attack.

"Your monster is gone and I win this duel," I smiled.

"But how! How can an amature like you know how to come up with such a way to defeat me!" This guy's spirit was broken. "You must have cheated!"

"Why must those who lose think that the winner cheats all the time," I raised a brow. "Why can't you just accept defeat graciously like the man you're suppose to be."

Marco growled at me then stormed out away from us then turned to look at us again.

"Tell me, where did you learn how to duel?" He demanded.

"From my grandfather!" I replied.

The guy then left. I could tell that I won't be seeing the last of him but it was a relief standing up to such a bully. Kids surrounded me with their praise but I looked for Ryou, who stood behind the crowd. I said my goodbyes to everyone then left with my date. We took hold of each other's hands and left the arcade. Ryou explained to me that he's impressed with how much I've improved in my dueling.

We walked slowly on our way back to grandpa's card shop. Lights were still on so I assumed everyone was still awake. I look at my watch and noticed it's only ten. Ryou stood outside for a while, just talking about our adventure at Duelist Kingdom then he started saying something really shocked me.

"When you got sick from that fever, I was worried that you might need a doctor. There was no hospitals nearby, that's when I realized that you mean a lot to me, Abigal," he turned to look at me.

I blushed.

"I carried you on my back to meet the others. I was really relieved to see you wake up again…" Ryou kept confessing.

He placed a hand on my cheek. I was so nervous that my stomach ached with knots. His brown eyes are so sweet and gentle. Yet, there's mystery in those eyes, like there's someone else looking into my soul as well. I really do like this guy… There's no mistaking it. My feelings for him are true. When we looked into each other's eyes, just inches away, I felt loved. Our lips met and our body connected. My arms around his neck and his around my waist. Even though this moment felt so perfect it still feels like evil continues to surround us.


	18. Author's note updated

I'd like to thank everyone for the support shown in this fan fiction. However, this is only the first book in my series. The second book is in progress and would like to take a gander at that one. It's called Follow the Heart of the Card: Book 2: Battle City . Just as the name suggest the part of the story is going to focus on the events that happen in the Battle City tournament. Abigal Lungfur is going to discover more about herself and realize that the person she trusted the most will betray her, for the past is beginning to repeat itself. Though, Abigal needs to focus on protecting the pharaoh, she cannot help but have conflicted feelings for those around her. What will happen as time goes on? Keep reading to find out!

I've editing the story so hopefully my character is less whiny and more stronger as I wanted her to. Though, there will be times when she shows her emotions but this time I won't have it become a habit. Please keep reading! Thank you!


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